PRESS RELEASE

ANNE FRANK 80 YEARS

PHOTOGRAPHIC IMPRESSIONS

A Memorial Tour in Current Images

Frankfurt am Main, Aachen, Amsterdam,

Camp Westerbork, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Bergen-Belsen

PICTURE BOOK

PHOTOGRAPHER/AUTHOR:RONALD WILFRED JANSEN

RWJ-PUBLISHINGIN ASSOCIATION WITH UNIBOOK 2009

FULL COLOUR

HARD COVER

SIZE FORMAT: A4

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

NUMBER OF PAGES: 160

NUMBER OF COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHS: 265

PRICE € 48 (INCLUDING VAT, EXCLUDING SHIPPING)

ISBN/EAN: 978-94-90482-01-5

You can also order directly from www.unibook.com,or at any good bookshop.

My picture book has been registered at Centraal Boekhuis BV by Unibook.

Anne Frank is world famous. Millions of people from all over the world have read her diary.

As such, the Anne Frank Foundation promotes Anne Frank and her mental legacy.

The travelling exhibition ‘Anne Frank — A History for Today’ is the most visited Dutch exhibition worldwide.

I visited The Annex for the first time in 2001. The Annex creates a deep impression on many people, and I was no exception: I could feel the tensions of the persons in hiding, and I realised that Anne had become caught in the Nazis web; she had been torn away from her everyday world. Her life was broken before it could blossem. Anne was interested in culture, religion and science, and had a keen interest in society at large, being very concerned about everybody’s experienced ups and downs — and that was why I thought it was so dismal that she had been killed. And, sadly, this was for one reason only: because she was a jew.

The need in me arose to portray the life of Anne Frank. Not by means of a biography or a book with old pictures, many of which have been published already before. Instead, I wanted to discover whether there are still remnants of her past life and surroundings in the present.

In 2008-2009 I made a photoreport about the residences of Anne Frank (1929-1945). I visited her home addresses in Frankfurt am Main, Aachen, the Merwede Square in Amsterdam, her place of hiding — the Annex in Amsterdam — and the concentration camps of Westerbork —Auschwitz-Birkenau and Bergen-Belsen — where she was kept imprisoned.

I have provided the pictures of short notes explaining the connection with Anne Frank. My recent pictures are an important addition to the many old pictures of Anne Frank.

The emptiness left behind by Anne Frank becomes evident when I place a recent picture next to an old picture depicting her, both taken from the same angle. When taking the pictures, I took special notice of interesting details and the historical character of the subject after all, the pictures are the result of personal experiences, which were often quite intense. My pictures show the traces of her residences which are still visible in the (rural) landscape; you can map out your own route along the places which are reminiscent of Anne Frank.

I was given permission both for visiting and taking pictures of the (inside) locations from the organisations concerned. My visits to these locations were carried out respectfully, whilst taking into consideration the applicable rules of the locations. 

I hope that my picture book inspires the reader and watcher to delve deeper into the history of the Holocaust and Anne Frank, and that it contributes to the mutual tolerance and understanding between people and cultures.

I also hope that my picture book contributes to the maintenance of the cultural heritage that still reminds us of Anne Frank.