Kate Middleton gets behind the camera for moving snaps of Holocaust survivors for exhibition
THE Duchess of Cambridge took moving photos of Holocaust survivors so they are never forgotten.
Aspiring photographer Kate, 38, snapped them with their families to mark 75 years since the end of the horrors today.
Yvonne Bernstein, 82, who was hidden in France, is pictured showing her ID card with a J on it to granddaughter Chloe Wright, 11. And Steven Frank, 84, who survived several concentration camps, poses with his granddaughters Maggie Fleet, 15, and Trixie Fleet, 13, right.
Kate says meeting them was a “privilege”.
Both portraits were taken at Kensington Palace, with the Duchess painstakingly spending over two hours ensuring they were perfect.
Two other survivors — Joan Salter, 79, and John Hajdu, 82 — posed for photographers Frederic Aranda and Jillian Edelstein.
Kate, who is Royal Photographic Society patron, said: “The harrowing atrocities of the Holocaust, which were caused by the most unthinkable evil, will forever lay heavy in our hearts.
“Despite unbelievable trauma at the start of their lives, Yvonne Bernstein and Steven Frank are two of the most life-affirming people that I have had the privilege to meet.
“They look back on their experiences with sadness, but also with gratitude that they were some of the lucky few to make it through.
“It is vital that their memories are preserved and passed on to future generations, so that what they went through will never be forgotten.
“Their stories will stay with me forever. Whilst I have been lucky enough to meet two of the now very few survivors, I recognise not everyone in the future will be able to hear these stories first hand.
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“I wanted to make the portraits deeply personal to Yvonne and Steven - a celebration of family and the life that they have built since they both arrived in Britain in the 1940s.
The project is a collaborative one between the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, Jewish News and the Royal Photographic Society.
Kate and William will today be at the Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony in Westminster.
SUPERB RESULTS
BY ARTHUR EDWARDS
CATHERINE’s first assignment was to photograph two holocaust survivors to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the holocaust.
I imagine that she was very nervous, but she tackled it brilliantly.
The picture of Steven Frank with his two granddaughters really impressed me because the first thing you notice is the cooking pot on his lap.
His mother carried it with her through every concentration camp that they were taken to, and collected small pieces of food in the pot and put water to it made a paste kept her and her son alive.
The lighting is very dramatic, it was dramatic times for those people whose only crime is that they were born a Jew.
The other picture of Yvonne Bernstein is also beautifully composed, and she is showing her granddaughter Chloe her German ID card.
Once again Kate has taken her time and got a beautiful photograph, using natural light.
Quite honestly I think she has done an excellent job. As patron of the Royal Photographic Society, I think they can be pleased that she is not only their patron but a very good photographer too.
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