The origin of the phrase 'Arbeit Macht Frei' is in the name of a novel from 1873 written by German philologist and novelist Lorenz Diefenbach (1806-1883). The Weimar Republic's government and the Nazi regime adopted this phrase. The Nazis placed it on several camps' gateways as misdirection, with contempt and irony, to instill false hopes in the prisoners' minds and prevent resistance and insurrection.
This book focuses on the various representations, meanings, and interpretations of the image 'Arbeit Macht Frei' in artworks. Among the artists are Holocaust survivors, second-generation descendants of Holocaust survivors, and others. They have used the inscription as a motif from a personal or general point of view to convey political statements and messages, or to present values, morals, or universal perceptions.
