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Put your face in the
hands of...
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The Art Of Jewish Heroism
Every Monday...
2 for 1 European Facial
Exhibit of Arthur Szyk's illustrations featured
at U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
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630 N. Old Woodward • Suite 301
Birmingham, Michigan 48009
248.642.6787
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47/tit'r,14- 71t
32431 Northwestern Hwy.
(248) 855-8447 .1720
„ars
7/ 5
2002
64
C OPE
SHARON SAM BER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
I is difficult to walk away from Arthur Szyk's work
and not understand his message: Jews should not be
portrayed only as victims.
- As you walk into the new exhibit of Szyk's art at
the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington,
D.C., the first image is an enormous back-lit illustration
that shows Jewish figures as victors and resisters.
That description could work for many of Szyk's illustra-
tions of Jews — and not just that first picture of Moses,
Aaron and the military figure Hur taken from a Haggadah
featuring his illustrations — because the artist set out to
redefine how people looked at Jews.
The Jewish art that Szyk (1894-1951) created was
intended to show that Jews fought for themselves and also
could be warriors who contributed to the
countries they lived in.
For Szyk, "Jewish history is not just persecu-
tion, it's heroism,” explains Steven Luckert,
the exhibit's head curator.
The exhibit, "The Art and Politics of
Arthur Szyk," is the first large-scale art exhib-
it the museum has ever held. It will run
through Oct. 14.
Battling Anti-Semitism
The exhibit's title shows how hard it is to sepa-
rate the political from the creative in Szyk's
life, as it takes the viewer through three dis-
tinct periods of Szyk's work — from Jewish-
themed illustrations to political cartooning to
drawings on behalf of the Jewish state.
In the 1930s, when he saw anti-Semitism
increase in his native Poland, Szyk was working mainly as a
book illustrator.
As he worked on the illustrated Haggadah, his anti-Nazi
message became more pronounced and Szyk even consid-
ered portraying the Egyptians as Nazis. Ultimately he did
not, but in the Haggadah he drew Jews going to Palestine
in a symbolic plea to keep Palestine's borders open so that
Jews could escape Hitler.
"An artist, especially a Jewish artist, cannot be neutral in
these times," he said in 1934. "Our life is involved in a ter-
rible tragedy and I am resolved to serve my people with all
my art, with all my talent, with all my knowledge."
In 1940, he immigrated to the United States.
Wanting to use his artwork to win support for the Allies,
Szyk turned to political cartooning and caricature.
He even offered his services to turn out propaganda for
the Polish government-in-exile.
.
Above:
In "Satan Leads
the Ball," Arthur
Szyk used his
talents to win
support for the
Allies of World
War II.
Left: Artist
Arthur Szyk
used po litical
cartooning
and caricature
to produce
anti-Hitler
art like "Bloody
Hands."