A unique candleholder honoring Holocaust survivor and renowned sculptor Naomi Blake has been unveiled at Hornsey Library, moving her daughter to tears with its intricate detail and powerful symbolism.
The piece, created by Haringey Libraries’ Tom Skitt, forms part of the nationwide ’80 Candles for 80 Years’ project commemorating the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz Birkenau’s liberation. The initiative features 80 bespoke candleholders designed by community groups, each telling the story of individuals or communities persecuted by the Nazis.
Naomi Blake’s remarkable journey from Holocaust survivor to celebrated artist began in the darkest circumstances. She and her sister Malchi survived working in a munitions factory, where they secretly sabotaged bombs, and endured a death march. Of their extended family of 32, only eight survived by 1945.
After relocating to London in 1952, Blake studied at Hornsey College of Art (now Middlesex University) and developed her distinctive artistic style. Her work, characterized by themes of optimism and interfaith understanding, served as a testament to the six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. Blake passed away in 2018 at age 94.
The memorial candleholder, crafted in clay, draws inspiration from Blake’s own “Memorial to the Holocaust” sculpture. It features newspaper clippings documenting her life story around its base, a detail that particularly moved her daughter Anita Peleg during her visit to the library this week.
“The level of detail Tom incorporated is remarkable,” Peleg said, visibly moved by the tribute to her mother’s legacy. “It captures both the darkness of her experience and the hope she always expressed through her art.”
The candleholder is currently on display at Hornsey Library as part of the national Holocaust Memorial Day commemorations on January 27, 2025.