M.G. in front of sudial sculpture, Bitola / Monastir, photo: Shlomi Amsalem Setting up the sundial sculpture
written by Naomi R. Azar
M. Grunberg studio manager
For the past four years, every March, Maty G. and I set out for Macedonia, the country of his birth, to attend memorial ceremonies held in the city of Bitola, which the Jews call Monastir, and in the capital, Skopje. During these years, Maty G. created a monumental sundial sculpture in memory of the Jews of Macedonia who perished in the Holocaust. The creation of the sculpture itself takes about three months, but all the "bureaucracy" (raising budget, obtaining permits ...) creeps in its slow time, as befits a sundial sculpture that knows it is eternal and is in no rush.
The duty and the right to accompany this project in writing and in photography have fallen in my part, (links to previous lists are detailed at the end of this column). This time we are particularly excited. The sundial, with all its parts, is ready, painted bright yellow. We arrive to assemble the sculpture in the metal workshop where it was built. The sundial is a metal construction, 9 meters in diameter, and weighs close to 3 tons, Maty must ensure that its parts are properly assembled and reinforced. He wants to examine it carefully and make sure that everything is correct, both the sculptural aspect, and no less important - the safety aspect entrusted to a qualified safety engineer. Every morning we arrive at the metal workshop, follow the construction of the sculpture, send pictures to the astronomer, Ilan Manulis, the director of the observatory at the Weizmann Institute of Science, whose scientific calculations accompany Maty's sundials. In fact, this is a sort of 'grand rehearsal' before the sculpture is placed on the amazing platform built for it at the center of the huge hill that is the ancient Jewish cemetery in the Balkans, in Bitola/Monastir.
M.G. with model of the sundial sculpture
As for art, in the central cities of Macedonia there are huge figurative statues in the public sphere, heroes adorned with enormous mustaches, gnarled muscles, swords drawn in their hands, plump women, giant breasts nursing chubby babies. (Sometimes gypsy child with a running nose, sits next to the heroic sculpture, begging for money, spoiling the picture…What a shame). The sundial sculpture, created by Maty G. is very unusual in this landscape, the first of its kind in the country, a clean contemporary construction that captures the abstract idea of time.
At the end of the week the sundial stands. Maty goes through a few points that require refinement with Zvonko, the workshop manager, he adds reinforcements that will ensure the stability of the statue, which will be presented in public for the first time tomorrow, March 10th, as one of the stations in the "March of the Living" that will take place in Bitola / Monastir.
The ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola / Monastir – The base of the sundial
We head to the cemetery to review the base that is in progress. The impressive platform was designed by ARCHAM group, four strong and determined Macedonian architects - Annie, Marianne, Vicky and Danielle, who even prepared a charming architectural layout for the park of life that will turn the cemetery into a place of living memory, with great respect for the dead. The leader of ARCHAM group is the energetic, full of Macedonian passion, lawyer Maria Geras Dochovska.
At the end of the week the sundial stands. Maty goes through a few points that require refinement with Zvonko, the workshop manager, he adds reinforcements that will ensure the stability of the statue, which will be presented in public for the first time tomorrow, March 10th, as one of the stations in the "March of the Living" that will take place in Bitola / Monastir.
The ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola / Monastir – The base of the sundial
We head to the cemetery to review the base that is in progress. The impressive platform was designed by ARCHAM group, four strong and determined Macedonian architects - Annie, Marianne, Vicky and Danielle, who even prepared a charming architectural layout for the park of life that will turn the cemetery into a place of living memory, with great respect for the dead. The leader of ARCHAM group is the energetic, full of Macedonian passion, lawyer Maria Geras Dochovska.
On March 11, 1943, the Jews of Macedonia were rounded up by Bulgarian soldiers who sent them to their deaths in Treblinka death camp. On March 10, 2019 the "March of the Living" is taking place in Bitola / Monastir.
I wrote a lot about the Holocaust, I even made a film about my family as Holocaust survivor - "A Jew from Hungary" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJfWE1fcTQ8&t=98s ,the subject touches the most sensitive nerves and depresses me deeply. Therefore, I turn my gaze and look at the life that is now bustling under the title - Memory of the Holocaust. "The revival of the memory of the Macedonian Jewish community in the ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola / Monastir" reveals a whole world of activities that are not related to memory and are unrelated to the Holocaust, but are an accompaniment to the presence of Israelis and Jews from all over the world who come to remember, and bring along their talents and their ability to act. Currently Macedonia is engaged in many activities relating to its relations with Israel, formal and informal contacts created by encounters of people who would never meet, but who came, to remember and to remind, thus creating a process that moves towards the future
Dan Oryan, Israel's Ambassador to Macedonia and Director of the Balkan Desk, leverages the project of reviving the ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola, by turning it into park of the Living, and links it to Israel's agenda that is relevant today. He creates connections in many fields, a strong bridge between Macedonia, which is a small country but a great friend of Israel. This is how inspirational elements come from different population groups in Israel, each of whom becomes the ambassador of the project in Israel.
I wrote a lot about the Holocaust, I even made a film about my family as Holocaust survivor - "A Jew from Hungary" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJfWE1fcTQ8&t=98s ,the subject touches the most sensitive nerves and depresses me deeply. Therefore, I turn my gaze and look at the life that is now bustling under the title - Memory of the Holocaust. "The revival of the memory of the Macedonian Jewish community in the ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola / Monastir" reveals a whole world of activities that are not related to memory and are unrelated to the Holocaust, but are an accompaniment to the presence of Israelis and Jews from all over the world who come to remember, and bring along their talents and their ability to act. Currently Macedonia is engaged in many activities relating to its relations with Israel, formal and informal contacts created by encounters of people who would never meet, but who came, to remember and to remind, thus creating a process that moves towards the future
Dan Oryan, Israel's Ambassador to Macedonia and Director of the Balkan Desk, leverages the project of reviving the ancient Jewish cemetery in Bitola, by turning it into park of the Living, and links it to Israel's agenda that is relevant today. He creates connections in many fields, a strong bridge between Macedonia, which is a small country but a great friend of Israel. This is how inspirational elements come from different population groups in Israel, each of whom becomes the ambassador of the project in Israel.
Maty G. with Dan Oryan, Israel Ambassador to Macedonia and head of Balkan deask, a dear friend of us
Dr. Rachel Shelly Levy Drumer was born in Macedonia, she is assisting the ambassador with endless dedication, Dr. Drummer is the Academic Secretary of Bar-Ilan University in Israel.
This year, over a thousand people, mostly locals and some from neighboring countries, take part in the March of the Living in Bitola/Monastir. About two hundred and fifty people come from Israel.
"March of the Living" is an organization of 48 branches all over the world, represented in Bitola/Monatir march by Dr. Joel Rappel, Israeli Historian who worked many years with Elie Wiesel. The organization combines extensive activities to impart Holocaust remembrance. Journeys to the concentration camps in which Jewish and non-Jewish students participate during holidays between semesters, many years have left for Poland alone. Ttoday there is a tendency to decentralize the memory and not to concentrate it in Poland. As in Macedonia, the March of Living is also active in other European countries where Holocaust took place, reminding the locals of the horror that had taken place, and of their silent by standing that allowed it to occur, along with the oath, never again, neither to Jews nor to other minorities.
To forget those who perished is to murder them for the second time, Dr. Rappel quotes Elie Wiesel. And we remember, a harsh memory, one cannot get used to it, one cannot remain indifferent. Suddenly, A detail from a long speech catches my attention - the Jews were imprisoned in Monopole Tabaco Factory for deportation to Treblinka, and the procedure states that one bathroom will serve three thousand people, the bathroom will work half an hour a day, the procedure also states that drinking is forbidden. I am horrified, and wonder about the person who wrote the procedure, and those who authorized it. Why? what have they thought?
Evil is much more charismatic than the good, evil permeates the tiniest cells, creating a monstrous reality.
Ze'ev Elkin - Minister of Jerusalem Affairs and Minister of Environmental Protection, honors the events with his presence. The minister inaugurates the Jerusalem Trail in the ancient Jewish cemetery. The construction of the path was made possible by the contribution of the Ministry to Jerusalem affairs.
The encounter with the sundial
The sundial waits patiently for us in the metal workshop near the cemetery. Its enormous size, its yellow color and its complexity, arouse wonder and curiosity among the spectators who ask Maty G. numerous questions and give him bags of compliments. The sundial is a little embarrassed by the attention and the press coverage, but it is very pleased. It worked hard to be born, and its mission is to be exposed to the general public, to preserve memory, and to bring hope.
Maty and me volunteered for this project, our excitement and satisfaction are beyond words. If only our parents would be alive to see it… We are lucky to have our children recognizes this huge effort, appreciate it and remember our ancestors and our history.
This year, over a thousand people, mostly locals and some from neighboring countries, take part in the March of the Living in Bitola/Monastir. About two hundred and fifty people come from Israel.
"March of the Living" is an organization of 48 branches all over the world, represented in Bitola/Monatir march by Dr. Joel Rappel, Israeli Historian who worked many years with Elie Wiesel. The organization combines extensive activities to impart Holocaust remembrance. Journeys to the concentration camps in which Jewish and non-Jewish students participate during holidays between semesters, many years have left for Poland alone. Ttoday there is a tendency to decentralize the memory and not to concentrate it in Poland. As in Macedonia, the March of Living is also active in other European countries where Holocaust took place, reminding the locals of the horror that had taken place, and of their silent by standing that allowed it to occur, along with the oath, never again, neither to Jews nor to other minorities.
To forget those who perished is to murder them for the second time, Dr. Rappel quotes Elie Wiesel. And we remember, a harsh memory, one cannot get used to it, one cannot remain indifferent. Suddenly, A detail from a long speech catches my attention - the Jews were imprisoned in Monopole Tabaco Factory for deportation to Treblinka, and the procedure states that one bathroom will serve three thousand people, the bathroom will work half an hour a day, the procedure also states that drinking is forbidden. I am horrified, and wonder about the person who wrote the procedure, and those who authorized it. Why? what have they thought?
Evil is much more charismatic than the good, evil permeates the tiniest cells, creating a monstrous reality.
Ze'ev Elkin - Minister of Jerusalem Affairs and Minister of Environmental Protection, honors the events with his presence. The minister inaugurates the Jerusalem Trail in the ancient Jewish cemetery. The construction of the path was made possible by the contribution of the Ministry to Jerusalem affairs.
The encounter with the sundial
The sundial waits patiently for us in the metal workshop near the cemetery. Its enormous size, its yellow color and its complexity, arouse wonder and curiosity among the spectators who ask Maty G. numerous questions and give him bags of compliments. The sundial is a little embarrassed by the attention and the press coverage, but it is very pleased. It worked hard to be born, and its mission is to be exposed to the general public, to preserve memory, and to bring hope.
Maty and me volunteered for this project, our excitement and satisfaction are beyond words. If only our parents would be alive to see it… We are lucky to have our children recognizes this huge effort, appreciate it and remember our ancestors and our history.
M.G. with Minister Ze'ev Elkin and ambassador Dan Oryan.
Skopje, a memorial service and the opening of the renewed Holocaust Museum
The next day, a memorial ceremony is held in Monopole Tabaco Factory, there are many ambassadors from all over the world. Maty and me lay a wreath.
The next day, a memorial ceremony is held in Monopole Tabaco Factory, there are many ambassadors from all over the world. Maty and me lay a wreath.
Later in the day, a ceremony is held in which the Holocaust Museum in Skopje is reopened with a new and impressing permanent exhibition. It is the largest museum in the Balkans, and it is very worthwhile to put it on the map of trips in the region. Goran Sadikarijo, CEO of Holocaust Fund of the Jews from Macedonia, is the director of the Museum.
In the evening there is another ceremony at the museum. Following her speech, Dr. Berta Romano Nicolik, President of Jewish community in Macedonia, introduces Maty Grunberg, the last Jewish child who survived the Holocaust of Macedonian Jewry. The story of his survival and his becoming into an international artist is a source of excitement and interest among those present, and he is warmly embraced. His works on the Holocaust are displayed on the third floor of the museum and are part of the Museum's permanent exhibition. It's a moving closure of a circle with his picture in the museum's display, as three-year-old in Macedonian outfit, and a picture of Maty, and his younger sister Liora, on the Kefalos ship at the entrance to Haifa port, 1948, the day they arrived Israel, a beginning of a new era.
In the evening there is another ceremony at the museum. Following her speech, Dr. Berta Romano Nicolik, President of Jewish community in Macedonia, introduces Maty Grunberg, the last Jewish child who survived the Holocaust of Macedonian Jewry. The story of his survival and his becoming into an international artist is a source of excitement and interest among those present, and he is warmly embraced. His works on the Holocaust are displayed on the third floor of the museum and are part of the Museum's permanent exhibition. It's a moving closure of a circle with his picture in the museum's display, as three-year-old in Macedonian outfit, and a picture of Maty, and his younger sister Liora, on the Kefalos ship at the entrance to Haifa port, 1948, the day they arrived Israel, a beginning of a new era.
Links to previuos colomns -
Memory / Eyes on th Future - http://www.matygrunberg.com/memory--eyes-on-the-future-2016.html
Haunted Memories - http://www.matygrunberg.com/huanted-memories-exhibition.html
Sundial Sculpture / Work in Progress - http://www.matygrunberg.com/exhibitions--events/archives/06-2018
Memory / Eyes on th Future - http://www.matygrunberg.com/memory--eyes-on-the-future-2016.html
Haunted Memories - http://www.matygrunberg.com/huanted-memories-exhibition.html
Sundial Sculpture / Work in Progress - http://www.matygrunberg.com/exhibitions--events/archives/06-2018
