Photos

This is inside the Holocaust Tower in the Jewish Museum Berlin. The tower is 24m of grey concrete, neither heated nor cooled, with no source of light except for a small slit in one of the top corners. It is a very dramatic setting in which to reflect and build an emotional connection to the history one has learned about but probably had a difficult time relating to.

Very interesting to me was the reaction of various people upon entering the tower. Most people stand quietly looking up at the light. One of the guys I was visiting with stood still for a few moments, then began crying and curled up in the fetal position on the floor in one of the corners. He was only able to recover and leave the tower after other friends came and wrapped their arms around him. (Would have made a nice photo, but lighting conditions were poor plus it would be highly inappropriate to intrude on his moment with a camera). He told me afterwards he had never felt so alone in his life before.

For me, the reaction was quite different. I don’t mind the sensation of being alone so I felt comfortable in the tower at first. But then I noticed that the way the light flowed through the tower made it appear as if some strange white butterfly or bird was flying away, with its back turned you, taking your dreams with it. It reminded me of the famous poem “First they came…” by Martin Niemöller.

A visit here while in Berlin is certainly worthwhile. For photographers especially, as it shows a very successful example of using the arrangement of light, shadow and shapes to evoke emotions and sensations in the viewers. Here this was completed larger than life in 3D, but I think overall the goal of many photographers may not be so very different.