(married name: Kann)

was born in Charkov on March 3, 1920. She studied Polish Studies at the University of Warsaw. In January 1940 she joined the underground army ZWZ (Związek Walki Zbrojnej), the union for the armed struggle. She operated as a courier in Warsaw and later within the eastern area of the General Government: in Lublin, Zamość, Nakło, and Siedlce.

On March 19, 1941 she was arrested by the Gestapo and taken into custody for one week at Pawiak prison, after which she was sent to Lublin, where she was tortured in the “Pod Zegarem” (“Under the Clock”) prison. 

She was taken by special transport to Ravensbrück concentration camp on September 23, 1941. There she was given the prisoner’s number 7925 and made to work in the applied arts, among other forced labour. Her comrades took over some of her forced labour, so that she could secretly produce artistic works out of toothbrush handles, including crosses and medallions with religious and mythical designs for her fellow prisoners. She also wrote poems and drew portraits of her fellow prisoners. During the 1941 Christmas season, a mystery play was even performed under her direction.

Zofia Pociłowska survived the concentration camp. After her release she completed her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw and becomes a well-known sculptor. One of her sculptures is located in the museum in Pawiak, the former Warsaw prison. She also created two sculptures for the Polish memorial room at Ravensbrück. She lives and works in Warsaw.

Zofia Pociłowska was said to have great skills in reciting poetry and literature, and communicated camp poetry to the outside world

In the smuggle was found a small eagle carved out of a toothbrush. She was in charge of smuggling documents and wrote more letters than any of the other inmates.

From the interview with Zofia Pociłowska-Kann (excerpt 4 min),  February 24, 2012 in her studio in Warsaw.

Present: Dr. Constanze Jaiser, Jacob David Pampuch, Julia Radtke, Nadja Grintzewitsch, Inge Gerlinghoff (translation).

More information about Zofia Pociłowska’s life is available in the online exhibition "Du bist anders? Jugendliche in der Zeit des Nationalsozialismus" (“You are different? Adolescents in the era of National Socialism”).