Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum in Woodstock has unveiled a moving new exhibition showcasing artwork created by Level 3 Art & Design students from Abingdon & Witney College.
Titled Letters from Liberation, the exhibition runs until 09 December 2025 and commemorates 80 years since the end of the Second World War and the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
This evocative display forms part of the museum’s wider programme marking the anniversary of the Holocaust and highlighting the essential role played by the Oxfordshire Yeomanry in the liberation of Bergen-Belsen.
Students were invited to explore personal testimonies, letters, and artefacts from the museum’s collection, responding creatively to stories that continue to resonate eight decades on.
Among the narratives that inspired the work are those of Holocaust survivor Naomi Kaplan (later Naomi Warren) and Arthur Tyler, an Oxfordshire Yeomanry soldier.
The two formed a remarkable bond: after the liberation of Bergen-Belsen, Naomi entrusted Arthur with letters to her family in the United States. His support eventually enabled her return to her loved ones and the beginning of a new life in Houston, Texas.
Through mixed media, illustration, sculpture, and conceptual pieces, the students have reflected on themes of memory, displacement, loss, hope, and survival. Their interpretations offer a powerful new generational lens through which to engage with the trauma and resilience of the time, demonstrating how art can illuminate history and keep its lessons alive.
Naomi Warren dedicated much of her life to Holocaust education, ensuring that the dangers of antisemitism and discrimination were never forgotten. Her legacy endures through the Holocaust Museum Houston and, in the UK, through ongoing partnerships with Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum.
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The museum extends sincere thanks to the Warren family for their continued support of its art and education programmes.
Letters from Liberation stands as a testament to the ability of young people to confront difficult histories with compassion and insight, bridging the past and present through creative expression.
