TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)– With International Holocaust Remembrance Day around the corner, CANDLES Holocaust Museum is getting ready to honor its founder with a new exhibit as colorful as she was.
The new exhibit includes a collection of scarves that Kor wore through the years. The wall stands out with a lively, yellow paint, something operations director Trent Andrews said was intentional.
“Here at the museum, we’re talking about the Holocaust. That can be a darker topic. Maybe a bit more somber or sobering,” he said. “With Eva always showing up with brightly colored clothing, she wanted people to have a sense of happiness and hopefulness and I think she reflected that with her clothing.”
Andrews said that was representative of how Kor, a Holocaust survivor, continued to educate people about the tragedy throughout her life.
“Despite the tragic past that she had, she was able to make something good of it,” he said. “With these outfit choices and with these bright colors, she’s showing the Holocaust is no longer a burden to her, it’s now something she’s using for good and she’s using it to educate people.”
On the other side of the wall, there are hundreds of photos of Kor– collected from dozens of different community members.
“Part of the exhibit includes a photo collage where we asked the community to share their best memories with Eva, asked them to share photos they had with her, so the photo collage we have here at the exhibit was actually a collection of all the photos that were submitted by our community,” he said.
There is also a lot of blue on the scarves displayed– representing a color that had significant meaning to Kor.
“Blue was a significant color to Eva because it represented peace. It represented hope,” he said. “She could’ve gone around wearing a black blazer with a black scarf, but she wanted to show that wasn’t her personality. She thought the blue color really represented who she was as a person.”
The grand opening will take place on Jan. 26th, at 6 p.m. It is the day before International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and less than a week before Kor’s birthday, on Jan. 31st.
