Artwork > Community Art Workshops > Youth Workshops
Facing History/Maimonides School
In 2019, I was invited by Facing History to partner with the Maimonides School to facilitate a meaningful art project inspired by their Holocaust education curriculum, specifically focused on their learning about Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese government official who created visas for over 2000 Jews during World War II. This collaborative collage was designed and created by the eight grade class under my direction; and students selected the message of “Make a Difference” along with the general themes of bravery and being an upstander to be the focus of their work.
The artwork highlights the simple material of paper - as students learned it was an item that saved thousands of Jewish lives when it served as a ticket to safety. Students had an opportunity to design and carve their own stamp (similar to the visa stamp used by Sugihara). They created the stamp using an image and word that resonated with them as a result of their learning, and utilizing translations in English, Hebrew, and Japanese characters to emphasize their thoughts. During Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), all students and teachers were invited to choose one of the student stamps created, and contributed to a background of 2000 stamps to represent the 2000 visas created by Sugihara.
Students also learned about Japanese art forms such as papercutting and Suminagashi (a type of paper marbling), and created unique papercuts that border the artwork with images of hope, strength, courage, and friendship. Many thanks to Facing History and Ourselves for generously funding this intensive artistic exploration of the eighth graders’ learning about one of the Holocaust’s unsung heroes - Chiune Sugihara.
The students hope the work will inspire others to “Make a Difference” too.
Sugihara’s Difference
Mixed media paper collage, 2019
8th Grade - Class of 2023
A meaningful note: one of the 2000 visas saved the lives of Mrs. Devorah Cohn and Rabbi M.J Cohn who became a Maimonides teacher and principal, respectively, each for over four decades. Their great-granddaughter is one of the eighth grade artists, so the project was especially meaningful for this class.