News Clipping of Hans-Gerd Meirs From The Opening Of Artist Ednah Sarah Schwartz Exhibit

Hans-Gerd Meirs Speaking At The Opening Of The Exhibit of Artist Ednah Sarah Schwartz

Trierischer Volksfreund, 22/09/86

The Caption of the Photograph: Hans-Gerd Meirs speaking at the opening of the exhibit of Ednah Schwartz (second from the left). Next to Ednah is the pedagogic head of CEB, Georg Hasenmuller, and next to Gerorg is Jutta Backs-Burr, the chief librarian.

These watercolors and pastels accentuate the strong tie of the artist with nature. This tie is derived from deep feeling rather than rational comprehension. This accounts for the artists use of powerful tones juxtaposed with delicate color.

Many of the themes of the paintings depict landscapes of the Jordan River, The Golan Heights and Kibbutz Kfar Blum in the Northern Galilee, where the artist lives.

The artists approach to portraiture is quite different. A person or an expression may capture her attention, Ednah then conveys her impression in quick, preliminary sketches. However, the actual work begins in the studio, where she labors long and hard to commit the sketch to a finished painting, capturing the original impression which caught her range of vision. In this way she succeeds in penetrating deep, beyond the mere features of the individual.

There is one subject which gives her no rest: “the annihilation of her people in the Holocaust, during Nazism and The Third Reich.” This subject was Taboo, never mentioned, spoken of, or addressed in her home. Ednah was fortunate to have a kind and understanding librarian in school who gave her books, secretly, of course, and spent time answering her questions on the subject, which was not dealt with in the lower grades. Looking at her paintings on this subject, one comes to realize that Ednah’s aim is to avoid having the painting block out that which cannot be understood. On the contrary, her aim is to make sure that forgetting never overpowers remembering. Only by remembering, repeating what happened from one generation to the next, only then does humanity have a chance to stop this from happening again.

Ednah is a member of Kibbutz Kfar Blum, where she lives with her family. She teaches art in elementary, junior high and high school. She volunteers her time working with difficult children in Art Therapy, and teaching adults.

This is the first exhibition of art in the Public Library. Ednah’s work will be on display until October 17.