At nightfall - childhood memories of contemporary witnesses on 5 March 1945
Exhibition on Chemnitz Peace Day until 6 May 2022 in Chemnitz Town Hall
Today, on the eve of Chemnitz Peace Day, Lord Mayor Sven Schulze and contemporary witnesses opened the audiovisual exhibition "At nightfall - childhood memories of contemporary witnesses on 5 March 1945" in Chemnitz City Hall.
18 men and women have their say in the exhibition and tell how they experienced the Second War and the bombing of Chemnitz in 1945 as children.
"The memories of the bombing raids of 1945 still characterise the contemporary witnesses today. They cannot forget what they had to experience as children in our city. And it has turned them into ambassadors for peace. The personal fates and cruel experiences of war must be told, preserved and reflected upon. They make it impressively clear what war means and why we must work for peaceful coexistence and social cohesion," says Lord Mayor Sven Schulze.
The exhibition consists of large, black and white portraits of contemporary witnesses. When these are illuminated with torches, excerpts from interviews with the 18 men and women who were asked about their memories last year begin.
"The conversations with the contemporary witnesses were very intensive and interesting. It was all the more gratifying that so many were willing to take part in the project and share their memories with me. It is so important, now that it is still possible, to give contemporary witnesses a voice," says Franziska Kurz, who designed and realised the exhibition on behalf of the City of Chemnitz.
The exhibition is open Monday to Thursday from 8 am to 6 pm and Friday from 8 am to 4 pm. It can be seen in the exhibition room of Chemnitz City Hall until 6 May 2022. (The corona regulations in force at the time of the visit must be observed).
A 20-page brochure has been produced to accompany the exhibition, which contains text excerpts and portraits of the contemporary witnesses.
Further memories of contemporary witnesses can be found in the themed city map on the City of Chemnitz website: www.chemnitz.de/zeitzeugen