An Amazing Discovery in Virginia
Post date: Aug 20, 2013 12:10:17 AM
Two weeks ago, during a presentation to teachers participating in the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater's Biennial Educators' Conference on the Holocaust, Producer Jennifer Goss visited the Virginia Holocaust Museum in Richmond, VA. Prior to the afternoon presentation, Goss toured the museum with the educators in the group.
The museum was created in 1997 by several individuals in the Richmond area, including survivor Jay Ipson. It relocated to its present location in 2003 and showcases displays of Holocaust-related materials and artifacts amidst the backdrop of the Ipson family's experience during the Holocaust - first as internees in the Kovno ghetto and then in hiding in the surrounding countryside. The permanent exhibition in the museum also covers the pre-war and post-war years, as well as the experiences of other Jews and other victims during the Holocaust.
One section in the central portion of the museum is dedicated to the children of the Holocaust. In addition to a list of children who were victims, there is a display of about twenty-five pieces of children's art from Theresienstadt. While exploring this section, Goss was utterly shocked to discover a copy of a piece of artwork which credited the artist as "Frank 'Mischa' Grunwald"! "It took my breath away," Goss shared. "I overheard one of the other teachers ask my friend and colleague, Karen Klaich, 'wasn't that the guy from the film?' I ventured over to see what they were talking about after they walked away, never expecting in a million years that this piece of art by Frank would be hanging on the wall!"
Although Frank remembers creating art in Theresienstadt, up to this point he was not aware that any of it had survived. Frank said, "This is really amazing, the only piece of art of mine that somehow survived. I wonder who [found it] and where it was found in Terezin. All I can say is that I did a lot of drawing and sketching in Terezin!"
The piece is currently stored at the Jewish Museum in Prague, which will be supplying Frank with a high quality copy of the piece for his archives. They are also searching for any other works of art by Frank that may have survived Theresienstadt. Frank's cousin, Igor, who resides in Prague is keeping the team appraised of any developments.
16 months after the film's premiere and 38 months after it all began, amazing discoveries are still being made about the Grunwald family story. It makes us wonder, what will we discover next?
