Naomi Blake (née Zisi Dum) was born in 1924 in Mukacevo, Czechoslovakia to a large Jewish family within a thriving Jewish population. In 1938 the town came under Hungarian control and following five years of increasing anti-Jewish discrimination, she and her family were deported to Auschwitz concentration camp. After enduring Auschwitz and the loss of many family members, sculpture became a positive means of expression.

Naomi studied art at the Hornsey School of Art and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of British Sculptors. As her work developed into abstract and semi-figurative pieces, she sought to promote understanding between faiths. To date more than 50 works stand in many places of worship and public spaces such as around the UK and overseas, such as, Bristol Cathedral, Norwich Cathedral, St. Botolph’s Church, Leeds Synagogue, Great Ormond St. Hospital, Fitzroy Square and Tel Aviv University.

Naomi’s daughter, Anita will introduce you to Naomi’s sculpture, which stands determinedly to help keep alive the legacy of the six million slaughtered Jews, as well as promoting Naomi’s vision for a more tolerant society and her hopes for the future.

Anita will be speaking on behalf of Generation 2 Generation, a charity that enables descendants of Holocaust survivors to tell their family stories.

Anita Peleg is a University Lecturer and National Teaching Fellow with a doctorate specialising in Business Ethics. She has also carried out significant research into the Holocaust and published two books about her mother, Naomi Blake, a sculptor and survivor of Auschwitz. She is Chair of Trustees and a speaker for Generation 2 Generation, a charity that enables descendants of Holocaust survivors to tell their family stories to a range of audiences. In these roles she is able to apply her 20 years of teaching experience to educate about the Holocaust, speaking at universities, schools, civic and religious institutions.