We are encouraged to present Eva’s life and works by the most recent inclusion, at our request, of her biography in the databases of the House of Jewish Excellence in Balatonfüred (link) and the Exhibition of Jewish Excellence in Győr (link).
The artist is well known to the Hungarian and Győr public, primarily from her memoir, published in Hungarian under the title Az emlékezés kavicsai (The Pebbles of Memory) (Print-Tech, Budapest, 1996, link), as well as from the publications of István Nagy, a local historian and master photographer from Győr (Quiritatio – Sikoly, Győr Jewish Tragedy, 1938-1945; 2010; link; Selection from two albums by painter Eva Quittner – Éva Klein, 2024, link).
This article is based on a biography developed and submitted by students of the János Richter Specialised Music High School in Győr (Horn Panka, Lents Dorottya, and Vígh Erzsébet; with the support of their teacher, Ildikó Mesterházi) for the database of Hungarian Jewish personalities, as well as on the document finalized by the curators of the aforementioned database and reviewed and supplemented by members of the Quittner family living in Australia.
We follow the database’s editorial requirements. We would also like to draw attention to the digital exhibitions in Balatonfüred and Győr (see links above), which provide an interactive, almost playful way to learn about the lives and work of hundreds of Hungarian scholars, artists, and athletes of Jewish origin, including more than a dozen from Győr and a large number from abroad. We are thankful for allowing us to use material prepared by the database editors in this publication. We would also like to thank the students from Győr for their work, as well as the Quittner family for their clarifications and for providing us with additional photo material.
Eva’s life in a nutshell
Childhood in Győr
Eva Mária Klein was born on 17 February in Győr, into a Jewish family.
Eva’s parents: Andor and Ferike – source: courtesy of the Quittner family
She attended the Győr Holy Order of St Ursula Girls’ School. The convent-run institution permitted no discrimination whatsoever within its walls—a principle that proved particularly significant in the years preceding the war.
Her father was taken for forced labour service first in 1942. Eva commemorated their farewell in verse, titled “To My Father in Russia”.
On the occasion of the national holiday on 15 March 1944, Eva was forced to confront the painful realisation that she had been cast out, no longer considered part of the Hungarian nation. Her father was compelled to remove the family nameplate from the entrance of their home.
Deportation
In May 1944, at thirteen years of age, she and her family were forced to relocate to the designated ghetto in the Győr-Sziget district. Thereafter, on 11 June 1944, they were transported to Auschwitz in cattle wagons under inhumane conditions. Separated from her family, her mother’s final cry rang out: “Be strong, Évi!” This call would reverberate within her until the end of her life.
She endured the camp’s harrowing conditions without her loved ones. Many years later she created a charcoal drawing capturing her mother’s final glance.
She spent her fourteenth birthday in the camp on 17 February 1945.
Following a bombing raid, she escaped from Parschnitz where he was forced to go after Auschwitz. After months of travelling on foot, she returned to Győr, only to discover that no one else from her family had survived the atrocities. During her journey home, she recited Sándor Petőfi’s poem “Plans Gone Up in Smoke” almost feverishly.
New Life
In 1945, her new life began in Budapest. As an orphan and sole survivor of her loving family it was extremely difficult. She somehow managed to matriculate whilst supporting herself with various jobs using her artistic abilities.
She married János Quittner and adopted the name Eva Quittner in the 1950s.
In 1956, after several attempts, she and her family successfully fled the country. Learning from previous efforts, she and her husband crossed the border separately, leaving everything behind, accompanied by their four-year-old son Gyuri, heading towards Austria. And then Australia welcomed and supported refugees arriving from Europe. They worked hard and slowly acquired language skills and success and endeavoured to integrate and build a new life for their family.
The birth of their second child, Diane, brought a sense of completeness to her family. They established a studio in their home, where she could pursue her passion and talent for painting and drawing without interruption.
In 1993, she published her book “Pebbles of Remembrance”, initially in English. She held her first solo exhibition at one of Sydney’s most prestigious venues, achieving remarkable success. Her first album, “The Art of Eva Quittner”, was released, featuring 84 paintings and 23 drawings.
“Pebbles of Remembrance” was published in Hungarian by Print-Tech Publishers in 1996.
Book covers – source: courtesy of the Jewish Excellence database
In 2008, “Eva Quittner in Bloom” was published as a follow-on from her first art book. It presents her paintings from 1993-2007 and focuses on her love of nature.
She wrote to the Mayor of Győr, in 2018, requesting permission to install Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) in memory of her loved ones. On the 75th anniversary of the deportation, the Stolpersteine were installed at 3 Rónay Jácint Street in Győr. Her children attended this event from Australia.
Eva passed away in Australia at the age of 91 on 10 July 2022 and is survived by her two children, three grandchildren and as of January 2026 there are three great grandchildren.
Her Work
Poetry and the art of remembrance
Éva had cherished both writing and reading poetry since childhood. In 1942, when her father was taken for forced labour, she commemorated their farewell in verse, titled “To My Father in Russia”. One of her early compositions was rediscovered in 2015, after she had completed her book; a former classmate sent it to her by post. This poem, written at thirteen, reflects the intimate bond she shared with her mother.
During her journey home from Auschwitz, she was consumed by the thought of reuniting with her beloved mother. Even then, poetry sustained her spirit. She recited Sándor Petőfi’s poem “Plans Gone Up in Smoke” silently or aloud, almost feverishly—a work expressing the sense of hopelessness and disappointment, yet simultaneously providing her with the strength to survive.
Pebbles of Remembrance
In 1993, with the assistance of editor friends, she published her book “Pebbles of Remembrance”, first in English, then in Hungarian in 1996. The work is an extraordinarily powerful autobiography of a young girl who grew up in a Jewish family on the eve of the Second World War. It chronicles her complete journey from childhood through the war’s sufferings to her eventual new life.
She documented events and locations in meticulous detail, drawing upon her exceptional memory. Due to the profound pain and trauma, she found herself unable to paint her emotions for many years, so instead committed her experiences to paper. She believed that if she could not readily draw or speak of these events, she might nonetheless be able to write her story, so that more people—particularly her grandchildren—could come to understand the horrors of that wartime period.
The book holds particular value for its comprehensive portrayal of middle-class family life in Győr, from clothing to managing a household without refrigerator or washing machine. Thus, Éva created a memorial to her loved ones, murdered in the Nazi death camp.
She wrote in her book: “It brings me joy to know that the Klein family’s story will not fade into oblivion. You, the new generation, carry within yourselves the future, ensuring this can never happen again.”
Painting and visual arts
She had always adored painting and drawing. In Auschwitz, the horrors prevented her from engaging with art—the circumstances did not permit it, nor did she possess the emotional strength. Years later, already in Australia, she created a charcoal drawing of the events, capturing her mother’s final glance.
In Australia, as their life gradually settled, they established a studio in their home where she could indulge her passion undisturbed. She developed her painting and drawing abilities to an artistic level. In 1993, she held her first solo exhibition at one of Sydney’s most prestigious venues, achieving remarkable success.
Her 1993 album, “The Art of Eva Quittner”, contains 84 paintings and 23 drawings. Her subjects encompass portraits, landscapes, travel observations, and intensely lived moments.
Her 2008 album, “Eva Qujittner in Bloom” depicts her works from 1993-2007 and showcases her love of nature.
One of her most profound works bears the title “Border Crossing”. At the painting’s centre, a mother and child traverse the black furrows of a ploughed field, walking towards the gathering darkness. This vividly expresses Éva’s state of mind when, with her four-year-old son, she fled through a frozen December night to Austria, where her husband awaited them. The contrast between black and golden-yellow evokes ploughed furrows, signifying a sense of separation, boundaries, and obstacles.
She never sold her paintings; for her, art was not a commercial matter but a spiritual one.
Preserving memory
Éva’s love for her family permeates her entire body of work. As the sole survivor of her large family, she resolved to ensure that their memory and very existence would never fade into oblivion. Had she remained silent, the most precious memories of the past would have been lost forever.
In 2018, she wrote to the Mayor of Győr requesting permission to install Stolpersteine. Following eighteen months of administrative proceedings, this came to fruition on 11 June 2019, the 75th anniversary of the deportation, at 3 Rónay Jácint Street, where her family had lived until the moment of deportation. The occasion was elevated by the presence of her children, who arrived for the event from Australia.
Éva requested that her readers, upon finishing the story, remain seated in silence and observe a minute’s silence in memory of the following: Franciska Klein (38 years old), Andor Klein (46 years old), József Klein (15 years old), Margit Büchler (59 years old), Pál Klein (44 years old), Ilus Reichenfeld (40 years old), Ilus Fürst (65 years old), Berta Fürst (63 years old), Rózsa Lukács (61 years old), Béla Lukács (70 years old), and all the young children of Győr who perished.
Did you know that…
her mother’s final words shaped her entire life…
When separated from her family in Auschwitz, her mother’s final cry rang out: “Be strong, Évi!” This call reverberated within her until the end of her life. Due to the profound pain and trauma, much later she created a charcoal drawing of the camp capturing her mother’s final glance. She wrote of her brother József: “Yesterday I lit a candle on my brother József’s birthday, 19 January. I cannot imagine him as an old man; he was three years my senior. He never reached his sixteenth year. I always picture him as fifteen. I pleaded with fate that at least he might survive, but in vain. No one remained.”
three attempts were made before the family successfully left Hungary…
In 1956, after several attempts, she and her family successfully fled the country. Life in Hungary had become difficult, which influenced their decision to emigrate. Learning from previous efforts, she and her husband crossed the border separately, leaving everything behind, with their four-year-old son Gyuri, heading towards Austria. They knew there would be no turning back. The birth of their second child, Diana, brought completeness to her family, allowing her to provide the family foundation that had once been taken from her.
Ursuline nuns protected her from antisemitic discrimination…
In a certain sense, Éva was fortunate, as the Győr Holy Order of St Ursula Girls’ School never permitted any form of discrimination within the convent walls. This proved particularly significant during the pre-war period, as antisemitic decrees and legislation proliferated. Whilst her dutiful brother was stigmatised and vilified at school; she remained protected by the nuns.
she never sold her paintings…
She never offered her paintings and drawings for sale. For her, art was not a commercial matter but exclusively a spiritual one. Her works served as vehicles for expressing her emotions—the loss, the hope, the beauty of nature, and the preservation of family memory. Her 1993 Sydney exhibition achieved remarkable success, yet her works retained deeply personal, spiritual significance throughout her life.
she lived to the age of 91, preserving her family’s memory until the end…
She passed away in Australia on 10 July 2022, at the age of 91. Until the end of her life, she preserved her family’s memory, thinking of them every day. In her book, she expressed: “Every day I think of my lost family, not only of the horrors, but also of my wonderful childhood, which ended so abruptly and tragically.” The memorial she erected to her loved ones will remain eternally as pebbles of remembrance, ensuring that those who once lived, loved, and whom we shall never see again, are not consigned to oblivion.
English translation by Jewish Excellence Database Management