Home - Blank-Mezger-Hesselberger Stiftung

The Ilse Blank-Mezger-Hesselberger Foundation, based in Munich, was established on 6 February 2023. It goes back to Ilse “Steffi” Blank, who came from an upper-middle-class German-Jewish family in the city. Without descendants of her own, she left her entire estate to the foundation.
The Foundation’s mission is to promote art and its preservation, to support research on Jewish life with a focus on Munich and Bavaria, and to encourage historical education and social awareness.

Die Synagoge Reichenbachstraße nach der Wiederherstellung 2025

Restoration of the Reichenbach Synagogue in Munich

After more than a decade of restoration work, the Reichenbach Synagogue in Munich was ceremoniously reopened on September 15, 2025. With this, the city of Munich regains a significant modern Jewish landmark.

Practical year of restoration in Hamburg

The Blank Art Foundation supports young students taking part in the Hamburg Restoration Practical Year with a bursary.

Renovation of the Funeral Hall of the Jewish Community of Nuremberg

With around 2,500 members, the Jewish Community of Nuremberg is one of the largest Jewish congregations in Bavaria. Its cemetery, opened in 1910, remains an active place of remembrance and religious practice.

Retro-digitization of the Publication Series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies (HfJS)

The long-standing publication series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies will soon be freely accessible worldwide under a new open-access agreement with Winter Verlag.

Digitization of the Library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria

The library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria is one of the most important Jewish special libraries in the German-speaking world.

Remembered Present – An Exhibition on the Theresienstadt Ghetto

In the travelling exhibition „Remembered Present“, artist Marlies Poss engages with the Theresienstadt Ghetto through original documents, personal stories, and artistic reflections.

Displaced Persons Camp Pocking-Waldstadt

After the end of the Second World War, numerous Jewish DP camps were established in the western occupation zones. For around 200,000 survivors of the Shoah, they became places of refuge, transition, and new beginnings.

Klezmer and More – Encounter with Jewish History and Culture

The project organized by the Network for Jewish History and Culture in Bavarian Swabia offers young people an engaging introduction to Jewish history and culture.

Travelling exhibition: “Yours, Anne. A Girl Makes History.”

The travelling exhibition tells the story of Anne Frank from her childhood to her last seven months in the camps of Westerbork, Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen.

The Bf Prize 2024 – Promotional award for critical design-related texts

The bf Prize was donated in memory of Wilhelm Braun-Feldweg, the noted pioneer of design.

„Flesh love All“ by PHOTOGRAPHER HAL

The photo artist Haruhiko Kawaguchi, the PHOTOGRAPHER HAL, born in Tokyo in 1971, has made love and attachment the central theme of his work.

Ichenhausen synagogue talks for the future

Ichenhausen, in the district of Günzburg, was home to the largest rural Jewish community in Bavaria.

Restoration of the Historic Reichenbach Synagogue

As a donor, the Blank Art Foundation is sponsoring the “Verein Synagoge Reichenbachstraße e.V.” in the restoration of a unique architectural monument.

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Practical year of restoration in Hamburg

The Blank Art Foundation supports young students taking part in the Hamburg Restoration Practical Year with a bursary.

Renovation of the Funeral Hall of the Jewish Community of Nuremberg

Retro-digitization of the Publication Series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies (HfJS)

The long-standing publication series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies will soon be freely accessible worldwide under a new open-access agreement with Winter Verlag.

Digitization of the Library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria

The library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria is one of the most important Jewish special libraries in the German-speaking world.

Remembered Present – An Exhibition on the Theresienstadt Ghetto

In the travelling exhibition „Remembered Present“, artist Marlies Poss engages with the Theresienstadt Ghetto through original documents, personal stories, and artistic reflections.

Displaced Persons Camp Pocking-Waldstadt

Klezmer and More – Encounter with Jewish History and Culture

The project organized by the Network for Jewish History and Culture in Bavarian Swabia offers young people an engaging introduction to Jewish history and culture.

Travelling exhibition: “Yours, Anne. A Girl Makes History.”

The travelling exhibition tells the story of Anne Frank from her childhood to her last seven months in the camps of Westerbork, Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen.

The Bf Prize 2024 – Promotional award for critical design-related texts

The bf Prize was donated in memory of Wilhelm Braun-Feldweg, the noted pioneer of design.

„Flesh love All“ by PHOTOGRAPHER HAL

The photo artist Haruhiko Kawaguchi, the PHOTOGRAPHER HAL, born in Tokyo in 1971, has made love and attachment the central theme of his work.

Ichenhausen synagogue talks for the future

Ichenhausen, in the district of Günzburg, was home to the largest rural Jewish community in Bavaria.

Restoration of the Historic Reichenbach Synagogue

As a donor, the Blank Art Foundation is sponsoring the “Verein Synagoge Reichenbachstraße e.V.” in the restoration of a unique architectural monument.

Contact

Restoration of the Reichenbach Synagogue in Munich

Practical year of restoration in Hamburg

Renovation of the Funeral Hall of the Jewish Community of Nuremberg

Retro-digitization of the Publication Series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies (HfJS)

Digitization of the Library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria

Remembered Present – An Exhibition on the Theresienstadt Ghetto

Displaced Persons Camp Pocking-Waldstadt

Klezmer and More – Encounter with Jewish History and Culture

Travelling exhibition: “Yours, Anne. A Girl Makes History.”

The Bf Prize 2024 – Promotional award for critical design-related texts

„Flesh love All“ by PHOTOGRAPHER HAL

Ichenhausen synagogue talks for the future

Restoration of the Historic Reichenbach Synagogue

Practical year of restoration in Hamburg

Renovation of the Funeral Hall of the Jewish Community of Nuremberg

Retro-digitization of the Publication Series of the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies (HfJS)

Digitization of the Library of the Jewish Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria

Remembered Present – An Exhibition on the Theresienstadt Ghetto

Displaced Persons Camp Pocking-Waldstadt

Klezmer and More – Encounter with Jewish History and Culture

Travelling exhibition: “Yours, Anne. A Girl Makes History.”

The Bf Prize 2024 – Promotional award for critical design-related texts

„Flesh love All“ by PHOTOGRAPHER HAL

Ichenhausen synagogue talks for the future

Restoration of the Historic Reichenbach Synagogue

Contact