Drawing made by an inmate of Camp Meslay du Maine

Franz (later Francis, 1909-1984) Reisz was born on April 3, 1909 in Vienna Austria to Hermann and Anna Reisz. Franz was trained as an artist and a painter. He married Lili Reisz (née Safir, born July 25, 1911) on May 31, 1938. They lived in Vienna, Austria until June 1939 when they moved to Paris, France. In September 1939 Frank Reisz was arrested and held at the French internment camps Beaune-la-Rolande and later Meslay-de-Maine. Franz was sent to the Pithiviers internment camp on May 14, 1941. In June 1942, he was transported to Auschwitz concentration camp and was issued the prisoner number 42447. At Auschwitz, Franz worked in an office. His postwar letters allude to efforts to save children from selection by hiding them near his desk. Recognized as an artist, Nazi soldiers asked Franz to create drawings for them. He also drew inmates of the concentration camps. In January 1945, he was sent to the Mauthausen concentration camp and was eventually liberated from the Ebensee concentration camp in May 1945. After liberation, Franz Reisz received treatment at several French hospitals. To pass the time he drew other patients in the hospitals. While in the hospitals, Franz was able to reconnect via letters with his wife, Lili. In 1940, Lili Reisz emigrated from France to the United States on the ship Champlain which arrived in New York on May 27, 1940. She likely lived with her brother, Leopold Safir in New York. After discovering that Franz survived, they worked together to reunite in the United States. On June 25, 1945, Lili passed her United States citizenship test and applied for a visa for Franz. He arrived in New York on April 19, 1946 on the ship Desirade. Franz Reisz died in New York on March 1984 and Lili Reisz died in December 1991. Franz’s mother did not survive the war. On December 18, 1943, Anna Reisz was sent to Auschwitz concentration camp and likely perished there. Franz’s sister, Elise arrived at Theresienstadt concentration camp in October 1942 and was liberated on May 9, 1945. While imprisoned, Elise met her husband and they were married in the camp in July 1944. According to her postwar correspondence with Franz, she and her husband were preparing to immigrate to England in 1945.

The drawing was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1989 by Franz Semrad.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Franz J. Semrad