Portrait of an internment camp inmate 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
Pencil portrait with studies 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
Portrait drawing in pencil of the face of a man, with his head slightly lowered, looking towards the viewer. He has lines under his eyes and a slight smile. The top of his head is not drawn and his hair is drawn in shaded patches. The left side of his face is shaded showing his wrinkles. There are 2 small studies below depicting the outline of a face in left profile on left, and the head and shoulders of a man turned away grabbing the back of his neck on right. It is signed and dated at the bottom.
Corporate Bodies
Subjects
- World War, 1939-1945--Prisoners and prisons, German.
- Deportees--France--Biography.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--France--Personal narratives.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945), in art--France.
- Concentration camp inmates as artists--Beaune-la-Rolande--Biography.
- Jewish artists--France--Biography.
- Concentration camps in art--France--Beaune-la-Rolande--Pictorial works.
Genre
- Art
- Object