PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Horwitz-Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza in Philadelphia is now home to the nation’s first large-scale mural dedicated to Holocaust remembrance in a public space.
The Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation and Mural Arts Philadelphia dedicated the 2,000 square-foot mural titled “Lay–lah Lay–lah.” It is made of hand-painted calligraphy in 28 languages, revealing memories, lullabies, prayers and poems collected from Philadelphians. As noted on the Foundation's website, the piece focuses on forced displacement and "experiences of erasure and survival."
“The Holocaust is many times referred to as a dark time of history, or the night of history, many say, so I wanted to create something that allows us to see how we step out of this, and how we step out of the victimhood of the shame and still remember it,” said artist Ella Ponizovsky Bergelson.
The mural was completed in the face of growing antisemitism. Jane Golden, executive director of Mural Arts Philadelphia, said the mural challenges people to think about what kind of world they want.
“And I love the fact that it has so many layers, because it really captures the human experience,” Golden added.
Rabbi Benjamin David, whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors, says he hopes the piece inspires more conversation.
“It reminds us that we have an obligation, all of us, to remember what was and to remember the 6 million Jews who perished in the time of the Holocaust.”
A prayer of gratitude was sung to mark the completion of the project.
An interactive map of the mural can be found here.