Gay Block: Rescuers

First published in 1992 to widespread acclaim, Rescuers: Portraits of Moral Courage in the Holocaust is a landmark addition to the sacred memory of the Holocaust. Featuring photographic portraits, archival materials and interviews, it was the first book (and exhibition) by Houston-born photographer GAY BLOCK; the exhibition has been seen in over fifty venues in the US and abroad, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York. 

Block spent more than three years traveling in eight countries, accompanied by author Malka Drucker, documenting testimonies from more than 100 rescuers—people who risked their lives to rescue Jewish victims from the Holocaust. The stories range from those who saved one life to those who worked in the resistance and saved thousands, always with the threat of death and torture if they were discovered. This new edition features a complete redesign and new foreword by scholar of Jewish American art Samantha Baskind.

As a portrait photographer, Gay Block began in 1973 with portraits of her own affluent Jewish community in Houston and later expanded this study to include South Miami Beach and girls at summer camp. Her landmark work with writer Malka Drucker, RESCUERS: Portraits of Moral Courage in the Holocaust, both a book and traveling exhibit, has been seen in over fifty venues in the US and abroad, including the Museum of Modern Art, NY, in 1992. 

Block’s photographs are included in museums and private collections including MoMA New York, San Francisco MoMA, and The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.