Studies of camp inmates reading by a Polish Jewish inmate
Extent and Medium
overall: Height: 8.250 inches (20.955 cm) | Width: 7.125 inches (18.098 cm)
Creator(s)
- F. (Fiszl) Zber (Artist)
- F. (Fiszl) Zber (Subject)
Biographical History
Fiszel Zylberberg-Zber was a Jewish artist born in Plock, Poland, on June 23, 1909. By the 1930s, he was living in France and established as an artist, especially known for his woodcuts. In May 1940, Nazi Germany invaded France. An armistice was signed in June. Germany occupief the northern and western regions. In 1941, the German began arresting and interning foreign born Jews. Zber was detained around this time. He was sent to Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp. In 1942, the German began deporting the inmates to concentration camps in the east. Zber was deported on Convoy 6 to Auschwitz concentration camp in German occupied Poland where he was killed on October 26, 1942, at the age of 33.
Archival History
The drawing was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2003.
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection
Funding Note: The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
Scope and Content
Sketches of inmates reading drawn by Fiszel Zber at Beaune-Le-Rolande internment camp in France where he was imprisoned from 1941-1942. Nazi Germany invaded France in May 1940. After the June armistice, the Germans occupied the north and western regions. In 1941, the Germans began rounding up Jewish residents who were not born in France. Zber, an artist specializing in woodcuts, was born in Poland. He was arrested as a foreign born Jew in 1941 and interned in Beaune-le-Rolande. While there, he drew scenes of the camp and the daily activities of the inmates. In 1942, the Germans began to deport foreign born Jews to concentration camps in the east. Zber was deported to Auschwitz where he was killed, age 33, on Oct. 26, 1942.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access
Conditions Governing Reproduction
No restrictions on use
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Three sketches in pencil on paper of men reading in various positions. At the top is a framed scene of 2 men sitting on either side of a table with a book in front. They are shown from the waist up, leaning down resting their elbows on the table. Another man leans against a bunk in the background, his arm resting on the rail. To the right sits a faceless figure, facing the viewer with his elbow on his knee and chin resting on his palm. At the bottom is a man lying on a bunk reading a newspaper. His crossed feet are pointed towards the viewer and his right arm is under his head. It is signed and dated at the bottom.
Corporate Bodies
Subjects
- World War, 1939-1945--Prisoners and prisons, German.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945), in art--France.
- Jewish artists--France--Biography.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--France--Personal narratives.
- Concentration camps in art--France--Beaune-la-Rolande--Pictorial works.
- Deportees--France--Biography.
- Concentration camp inmates as artists--Beaune-la-Rolande--Biography.
Genre
- Art
- Object