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Kate Middleton Photographs Holocaust Survivors for a Memorial Exhibition

Bianca Betancourt
Photo credit: Kensington Palace - Instagram
Photo credit: Kensington Palace - Instagram

From Harper's BAZAAR

  • The Duchess of Cambridge took part in a photo exhibition showcasing 75 different images of Holocaust survivors in honor of 75 years passing since the end of the World War II genocide.

  • Kate captured images of two Holocaust survivors and their grandchildren for the exhibition and in honor of Holocaust Memorial Day in the U.K.

The Duchess of Cambridge is behind the camera again. But this time, it’s for a profound and historic cause.

Kate photographed two Holocaust survivors, Steven Frank and Yvonne Bernstein, along with their grandchildren and sentimental items of personal significance, in honor of Holocaust Memorial Day in the U.K. The photos were taken at Kensington Palace and will be part of an upcoming exhibition showcasing 75 different moving images, marking the 75 years that have passed since the end of the Holocaust.

According to People, Kate was reportedly honored to be granted the chance to photograph the survivors and wanted to pay tribute to their “life-affirming” stories.

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As part of the commemorations for the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust, The Duchess of Cambridge has taken photographs of two Holocaust survivors with their grandchildren. The first photograph features Steven Frank with his granddaughters, Maggie and Trixie. Alongside his mother and brothers, Steven was sent to Westerbork transit camp then to Theresienstadt. Steven and his brothers were 3 of only 93 children who survived the camp - 15,000 children were sent there. The Duchess also photographed Yvonne Bernstein with her granddaughter Chloe. Yvonne was a hidden child in France, travelling in the care of her aunt and uncle and frequently changing homes and names. The Duchess said: “I wanted to make the portraits deeply personal to Yvonne and Steven – a celebration of family and the life that they have built since they both arrived in Britain in the 1940s. The families brought items of personal significance with them which are included in the photographs. It was a true honour to have been asked to participate in this project and I hope in some way Yvonne and Steven’s memories will be kept alive as they pass the baton to the next generation.” The portraits will form part of a new exhibition opening later this year by @holocaustmemorialdaytrust, Jewish News and @royalphotographicsociety , which will feature 75 images of survivors and their family members. The exhibition will honour the victims of the Holocaust and celebrate the full lives that survivors have built in the UK, whilst inspiring people to consider their own responsibility to remember and share the stories of those who endured Nazi persecution. Portraits ©The Duchess of Cambridge

A post shared by Kensington Palace (@kensingtonroyal) on Jan 26, 2020 at 2:05pm PST

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Today is #HolocaustMemorialDay, which takes place each year on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, and honours survivors of the Holocaust, Nazi Persecution, and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. Earlier this month, The Duchess of Cambridge met two Holocaust survivors, Steven Frank and Yvonne Bernstein, as she took photographs for a project by @holocaustmemorialdaytrust, Jewish News and @royalphotographicsociety to mark 75 years since the end of the Holocaust. The Duchess’s photographs will be included in an exhibition of 75 images of survivors and their family members, which will open later this year. “The harrowing atrocities of the Holocaust, which were caused by the most unthinkable evil, will forever lay heavy in our hearts. Yet it is so often through the most unimaginable adversity that the most remarkable people flourish. Despite unbelievable trauma at the start of their lives, Yvonne Bernstein and Steven Frank are two of the most life-affirming people that I have had the privilege to meet. They look back on their experiences with sadness but also with gratitude that they were some of the lucky few to make it through. Their stories will stay with me forever.” – The Duchess of Cambridge Photographs © Kensington Palace

A post shared by Kensington Palace (@kensingtonroyal) on Jan 27, 2020 at 2:07am PST

“The harrowing atrocities of the Holocaust, which were caused by the most unthinkable evil, will forever lay heavy in our hearts. Yet it is so often through the most unimaginable adversity that the most remarkable people flourish,” said the duchess in a statement. “Despite unbelievable trauma at the start of their lives, Yvonne Bernstein and Steven Frank are two of the most life-affirming people that I have had the privilege to meet.”

Kate went on to say that her time meeting with and photographing the survivors is a memory that she will cherish forever.

“They look back on their experiences with sadness but also with gratitude that they were some of the lucky few to make it through. Their stories will stay with me forever. Whilst I have been lucky enough to meet two of the now very few survivors, I recognize not everyone in the future will be able to hear these stories first hand. It is vital that their memories are preserved and passed on to future generations, so that what they went through will never be forgotten.”

Kate’s photography project won’t be the only royal acknowledgement of Holocaust Memorial Day. The duchess and her husband, Prince William, are scheduled to attend the U.K. Holocaust Memorial Day Commemorative Ceremony in Westminster later today.

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