The Tayar Foundation works to preserve the Jewish legacy of the Maltese Islands, bringing attention to the communities that call the archipelago home, and advancing the understanding of Jewish history in general. As the name suggests, the exhibition documents Anne Frank’s life as told in her famous diary, from her birth in 1929 until her passing in the concentration camp of Bergen-Belsen at just 15 years old. Anne Frank’s writings detailed her Jewish family’s move from Germany to Amsterdam in 1933—the year the Nazis took power in Germany. The Frank family was imprisoned in Amsterdam during World War II due to the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands.  

Her diary entries were not only impactful due to the insight it offered into the Jewish experience under the Nazi regime, but also because they were written without the intention of publication. Anne Frank recounted her experiences, but she also wrote about her regular teenage girl thoughts; She expressed her interest in a boy named Peter, and addressed letters to a fictional character she made up named Kitty. Thus, her diary is a stark reminder of the dreams, ambitions, and innocence each Holocaust victim held. ‘Let Me Be Myself’ invites viewers to think about issues like discrimination, prejudice, and identity as they relate to Anne Frank and the Holocaust. 

The exhibition features large images depicting Anne’s happy early years in Frankfurt before her immigration to Amsterdam, in addition to images of the house where the Frank family spent more than two years hiding. The 34 panels each include key texts and photos pertaining to the world at the time, including the concentration camps, deportations, and the Netherlands under Nazi occupation. Artefacts, films, and a model of the house bring Anne’s story to life even more through its thirty-four intricate panels. Visitors can also view a reproduction of her diary, also known as one of the most well-known and read books in history.