Comments
Realm of Silence expresses a deep sensitivity toward the victims of the Holocaust and a sense of the brutality of the oppressors. “Frozen Nightmare” especially is able to bring the viewer to an understanding of the meaning of things we cannot understand: here we witness the cold and snow of an Auschwitz winter day. Indeed, it is a “Nightmare” as there is no escape and the absence of human figures in the paintings suggests there is a warning to understand about what may be called an “architecture of brutality.” [Ms.] de Baëre’s work stands as a memorial to the victims and a warning about the vigilance we all must have about the return of state organized brutality and dehumanization.
Dr. Stephen Feinstein, Director
Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies
University of Minnesota
Realm of Silence is like being blown by a stiff winter wind. You feel chilled afterwards by a force you never saw coming. The paintings are a study in subtlety. They’re stark without being simplistic. They’re evocative without being maudlin. And they portray the unimaginable horror and death of the Holocaust without actually displaying any of it.
Joe Eskenazi
Staff writer
j. the Jewish news weekly of Northern California
Falkirk Cultural Center was honored to exhibit Realm of Silence by Elvire Coriat de Baere. With its striking yet subtle poetic, images, the work spoke volumes about the depth and gravity of this tragedy. Our audience was greatly moved by this work, which echoed powerfully in our galleries.
Beth Goldberg
Curator of Exhibits
Falkirk Cultural Center
Elvire, your poetry serves as the lyrics to your haunting and soul stirring paintings of the Holocaust. I could not only see, but hear and feel the chill of the horrors that were before me - simple yet powerful in expression. Your work is not only a memorial but an illumination of the tenacity we all must have to work against hatred and intolerance.
Jeannette Longtin