This free, virtual program will highlight the opening of our new exhibition, “Justice, Justice, You Shall Pursue: the Art and Propaganda of Arthur Syzk.” This event will feature a conversation with Rabbi Irvin Ungar, author and curator of The Arthur Szyk Society in Burlingame, California.
Polish-Jewish artist Arthur Szyk may be best known for his wartime anti-Nazi illustrations and for the Haggadah he illustrated in the tradition of medieval illuminated manuscripts. A prolific artist, he created political cartoons and propaganda that took aim at Nazi Germany’s murderous policies.
The Florida Holocaust Museum newest exhibition features Szyk’s illustrations, illuminated books, and other works. The exhibition focuses on his early artwork created before World War II, including his famous Hagaddah, and illustrations and propaganda drawn and painted during World War II that ridiculed the Nazis. The exhibition also features works that speak out for social justice and tolerance in the United States as well as works praising American ideals of liberty and justice.
Irvin Ungar, a former pulpit rabbi and antiquarian bookseller, has devoted the past quarter-century to scholarship on Arthur Szyk. He has curated and consulted for numerous Szyk exhibitions. He is the author of Arthur Szyk: Soldier in Art (winner of the 2017 National Jewish Book Award), co-producer of the documentary film, “Soldier in Art: Arthur Szyk,” and the creator and publisher of the luxury limited edition of The Szyk Haggadah.
Be among the first to see the new exhibit in person when you visit The FHM in January. We’ll be open to the public on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the exception of New Year’s Day (closed). Advanced timed tickets are required to help with social distancing. Reserve yours here:
https://thefhm.org/visit/hours.
Thank you to Dr. Herbert and Jane Wollowick for generously sharing their collection.
This exhibition is sponsored by The Jewish Federation of Florida’s Gulf Coast, the Gemunder Family Foundation, and an Anonymous donor. This project is also sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture and the National Endowment for the Arts (Section 286.25, Florida Statutes).
About the Presentation:
To the Hallowed Memory of Europe’s Martyred Jews: The Holocaust Art of Arthur Szyk
This illustrated presentation pays tribute to the memory of European Jewry through the art of Arthur Szyk, the leading artist for Jewish rescue in America during the Holocaust. A self-identified “soldier in art,” Szyk — whom Eleanor Roosevelt called a “one-man army” — fought the Nazis with pen and brush on behalf of the Allies and the Jews of Europe.
