Kate Middleton took 'life-affirming' photos of Holocaust survivors and their families 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz

Steven Frank and granddaughters Maggie and Trixie Fleet taken by Kate Middleton

Kate Middleton took a series of photos of survivors of the Holocaust as part of a new exhibition.
The photos depict survivors with their families, and come 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz.
Some of the images taken by Kate Middleton are viewable on Instagram, where she called the opportunity to meet and photograph Holocaust survivors "life-affirming."
The Duchess of Cambridge is one of several photographers whose work is part of the exhibition.
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Kate Middleton took a series of photos of survivors of the Holocaust on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, and she called the experience "life-affirming."

The photos were released as part of an exhibition for Holocaust Memorial Day, marked each January 27 to commemorate victims of the Holocaust, and some of them are viewable on the @kensingtonroyal Instagram page.

As part of the commemorations for the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust, The Duchess of Cambridge has taken photographs of two Holocaust survivors with their grandchildren. The first photograph features Steven Frank with his granddaughters, Maggie and Trixie. Alongside his mother and brothers, Steven was sent to Westerbork transit camp then to Theresienstadt. Steven and his brothers were 3 of only 93 children who survived the camp - 15,000 children were sent there. The Duchess also photographed Yvonne Bernstein with her granddaughter Chloe. Yvonne was a hidden child in France, travelling in the care of her aunt and uncle and frequently changing homes and names. The Duchess said: “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 families brought items of personal significance with them which are included in the photographs. It was a true honour to have been asked to participate in this project and I hope in some way Yvonne and Steven’s memories will be kept alive as they pass the baton to the next generation.” The portraits will form part of a new exhibition opening later this year by @holocaustmemorialdaytrust, Jewish News and @royalphotographicsociety , which will feature 75 images of survivors and their family members. The exhibition will honour the victims of the Holocaust and celebrate the full lives that survivors have built in the UK, whilst inspiring people to consider their own responsibility to remember and share the stories of those who endured Nazi persecution. Portraits ©The Duchess of Cambridge
A post shared by Kensington Palace (@kensingtonroyal) on Jan 26, 2020 at 2:05pm PST on Jan 26, 2020 at 2:05pm PST

"The harrowing atrocities of the Holocaust, which were caused by the most unthinkable evil, will forever lay heavy in our hearts," the Duchess of Cambridge said of the photos on Instagram.

"Yet it is so often through the most unimaginable adversity that the most remarkable people flourish."

In the first of the photographs taken by the Duchess of Cambridge, 84-year-old Steven Frank is seen with granddaughters Maggie and Trixie Fleet, aged 15 and 13. Originally from Amsterdam, Frank survived forced internment in multiple concentration camps as a child, and today lives in the UK.

Frank said of the photo: "I would hope that the people who look at these pictures not only look at the beauty of the photography, but they will also think of the people behind the photos and their families that they lost in the Holocaust.'"

Trixie Fleet said being photographed by the Duchess of Cambridge was "amazing," adding she "was really interested in our family and in Opa's story, and the items we brought with us."

Maggie Fleet added: "I think it helped put into perspective that he's just our Opa — he's our grandpa as well as a Holocaust survivor. It's important to tell the story so it doesn't happen again."

Today is #HolocaustMemorialDay, which takes place each year on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, and honours survivors of the Holocaust, Nazi Persecution, and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. Earlier this month, The Duchess of Cambridge met two Holocaust survivors, Steven Frank and Yvonne Bernstein, as she took photographs for a project by @holocaustmemorialdaytrust, Jewish News and @royalphotographicsociety to mark 75 years since the end of the Holocaust. The Duchess’s photographs will be included in an exhibition of 75 images of survivors and their family members, which will open later this year. “The harrowing atrocities of the Holocaust, which were caused by the most unthinkable evil, will forever lay heavy in our hearts. Yet it is so often through the most unimaginable adversity that the most remarkable people flourish. 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. Their stories will stay with me forever.” – The Duchess of Cambridge Photographs © Kensington Palace
A post shared by Kensington Palace (@kensingtonroyal) on Jan 27, 2020 at 2:07am PST on Jan 27, 2020 at 2:07am PST

The second photograph depicts Yvonne Bernstein and her 11-year-old granddaughter, Chloe Wright. Born in Germany in 1937, Bernstein was separated from her parents and had to travel with her aunt and uncle to escape persecution, including two months hiding in a convent with a cousin. She was eventually reunited with her parents in June 1945, when she was eight years old.

"I'm happy my grandma's story is being shared, because it raises awareness," Wright said of being photographed with her grandmother.

"Her story gives more perspective on the history, so you don't just see what's written in books, but hear what people witnessed first-hand."

The Duchess of Cambridge also said on Instagram how "life-affirming" it was to meet Bernstein and Frank.

"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," she said. "They look back on their experiences with sadness but also with gratitude that they were some of the lucky few to make it through. Their stories will stay with me forever."

The Duchess of Cambridge's photos are part of an exhibition that includes other photos of Holocaust survivors and their families, taken by photographers including Jillian Edelstein, Frederic Aranda, and fellows of the Royal Photographic Society.

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