Testimonies

Karl and Ceija Stojka are brother and sister who survived the Holocaust and internment at Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen. Their father was sent to the Dachau concentration camp, then to Schloss Hartheim, where he was killed.

After the end of World War II, their family saw the lack of acknowledgement of the Porajmos in Austria, the population’s ignorance concerning this suffering and the continuation of some anti-Romani policies.

The never forgettable experiences become a central and eternal theme of their artistic work. Although both famous in Austria, it was in particular Ceija’s art that evoked international recognition. Ceija's paintings reflect upon the entrenched sorrow in the bodies and spirit of the victims. There are several books, films and artistic works which are capturing her life. Ceija published her first autobiographic book in 1988, "We Live in Seclusion. The Memories of a Romni". Later on in 1992 she published another autobiographical book called: “Reisende auf dieser Welt” /"Travellers on This World". Besides writing, Ceija also sang in Romanes.

Only in 1989, at the age of 56, Ceija Stojka began to paint. Her work has been exhibited in western and eastern Europe as well as in Japan. In 2005 the Jewish Museum of Vienna organized an exhibition entitled „Ceija Stojka, Leben!”. In 2010, her artworks were exhibited for the first time in the U.S. Her ars poetica declared: „I always try to portray my feelings and memories. I want to show my own world to the people. It is important to understand that, we are all human beings and art allows us to live and exist. Art can demonstrate and connect us”. Her artistic account offers stories and visual representation of trauma as a new mean to face the past in order to start a new and meaningful dialogue and challenge the various forms of discrimination and violence in present day Europe. Ceija Stoika was an outstanding Austrian Romani woman, one of the members of The Romani Elders of Europe, and a key figure for the history, art, and literature of Romani culture in Europe. Ceija Stojka is featured in the 2013 US documentary film "Forget Us Not", which follows several non-Jewish survivors of the Holocaust.

Ceija Stojka died on 28 January 2013.

Karl Stojka's story is told in the pedagogical and interactive website RomaSinti.eu, a Dutch initiative Tweedewereldoorlog.nl dedicated to World War II.