Journey into the past

It began with a sort of treasure hunt. In 2001, German filmmaker Benjamin Geissler - after extensive research - uncovered the lost murals of Jewish writer and artist Bruno Schulz. A sensational discovery that has stayed with Geissler ever since, especially because shortly after the frescoes were first found, a number were removed without consultation.

The frescoes were found in this house in Drohobych, the former home of World War II SS head squad leader Felix Landau, who was involved in the murder of the Jews in the region. He tasked Schulz with decorating the rooms of his children with fairytale scenes. The commission protected Schulz, but not for long: in November 1942, he was shot in the street.

Today, Schulz is one of the most famous Polish writers. His works have been translated into 30 languages, including his most famous book, "The Street of Crocodiles," which continues to fascinate people around the world. His prose is phantasmagoric; many consider him the "Polish Kafka." Schulz is often quoted as saying, "My ideal goal is to mature into childhood. That would be genuine maturity."

Drohobych now lies in Ukraine, making it difficult to determine who actually owns the discovery. The uncovering of the frescoes, seen here, went relatively quickly, but before any further plans could be made, representatives of the Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem detached three frescoes from the wall and brought them to Jerusalem in 2001.

The move by Yad Vashem sparked worldwide discussion. To this day, the frescoes have remained in Israel. The remaining pieces are also no longer in place, as they were placed in a Ukrainian museum. In his film, " Bilder Finden" ("Finding Pictures"), Geissler tells the story of the frescoes, how they were found and then destroyed.

Geissler spent a lot of time filming in Drohobych. There, he met with Polish artist Alfred Schreyer (seen here, at left), the last remaining Jew born in the city before the war. He was once a student of Schulz, who had been earning his living as an art teacher at the local high school. Schreyer's family was murdered by the Nazis; he himself narrowly escaped death.

Geissler was unable to forget the frescoes, and so decided to digitally reconstruct the works of art. He said this was possible because he was the only person who had filmed and photographed the walls. The installation was recently on display in Berlin, and will soon travel on to Poland and Ukraine, once funding is secured.

The video installation consists of a room, built to match the scale of the room in Drohobych, that brings Schulz's frescoes to life. "[The exhibit] allows visitors to experience a sense of physicality, and [Schulz's] composition," said Geissler. The different phases of the chamber are shown using this video technique, from discovery to exposure and ultimately, destruction.

In an accompanying exhibition, Geissler tells visitors the story of the man who painted the frescoes, and hopes to "make people curious about the world of Bruno Schulz." He wants to start a dialogue: about Bruno Schulz, his frescoes and their difficult history.

Geissler is not alone in his fascination with Bruno Schulz. Russian documentary filmmaker Stanislav Dorochenkov also shares an admiration for the life and works of the Jewish author. He traveled to Berlin to take a look the digital reconstruction of Schulz's art - which hopefully will soon be on the road itself.