“Lest We Forget” exhibit honoring Holocaust survivors comes to Pitt

Photographs from the German-Italian artist Luigi Toscano’s traveling exhibit “Lest We Forget” will line the pathway from the Cathedral of Learning to Heinz Chapel from Oct. 18 to Nov. 15. Held in partnership with the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, the exhibit consists of 50 life-size portraits of holocaust survivors — including 15 from the Pittsburgh area.

The exhibit is deliberately timed to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Tree of Life shooting in Squirrel Hill, which is the largest anti-Semitic attack in American history.

The exhibit has already been on display in places such as the headquarters of the United Nations and around the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool, as well as internationally in Austria, Belgium and Ukraine.

As relayed by University Spokesperson Kevin Zwick, Toscano intends the large portraits to raise awareness of hate and bigotry, and they are intentionally placed in open settings like parks or public squares so that they are accessible to everyone.