A unique exhibition is mounted at the former synagogue in Šaštín-Stráže — sculptural works created from the damaged roof beams that were removed during the ongoing gradual restoration of the building.
Built in 1852, the synagogue was used as a warehouse for grain after WW2 and eventually fell into a complete disrepair.
By 2019, it was slated for demolition, until a civic association was established and initiated measures to save the building and convert it into a gallery and cultural center. A leader in the campaign to save and restore the synagogue has been Pavol Demeš, an independent foreign policy analyst, civil society expert and TV anchor.
In November 2019, the government listed it as a national cultural monument.
Work has entailed cleaning the building and repairing the roof — you can follow updates on the association’s Facebook page. Financial support has come from the Trnava self-governing region, and from crowd-funding.
The roof repair last fall entailed removal of damaged or rotten beams and documentation of the painted elements of the ceiling, which will serve as a guide for restorers. A metal roof was installed.
Some of the removed beams are being used to construct furniture; some were given over to artists to create works that will form part of the permanent decoration.
The exhibition of these sculptures — by 14 artists and designers — opened on June 27.
Photos show some of the sculptures as mainly massive pieces that conserve the form of the beams.
“Each piece of wood carries memory, pain and hope – and it has been given a new life in the hands of artists,” a school headmistress who attended the opening wrote in a Facebook post.
Facebook page of the Civic Association Synagoga Sastin- Straze Gallery Shul
