Artur Szyk

• Born 1894-06-03 · Died 1951-09-13

As a boy, Artur Szyk drew biblical scenes from the Hebrew Bible. He showed talent that prompted his father, upon the advice of Artur's teachers, to send the boy to Paris to study at Académie Julian. He returned to Poland in 1913 and during 1912–1914 he produced numerous drawings and caricatures on contemporary political themes that were published in the Łódź satirical magazine *Śmiech*. He also continued his studies in Teodor Axentowicz's class at Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. He was conscripted into the Imperial Russian army in 1914, but at the beginning of 1915, he managed to escape and spent the rest of the war in his home city, where he published a series of postcards of Russian soldiers that year. In 1919, he published, with poet Julian Tuwim, his first book of political illustrations but was back in the army again during the Polish–Soviet War of 1919–1920. From 1921 on, he lived and worked mainly in France and Poland; moving in 1937 to the United Kingdom. While there, he published his version of the Haggadah, which is considered his magnum opus. The Haggadah is a very important and popular story in Jewish culture read every year during the Passover Seder. Szyk illustrated the Haggadah in 48 miniature paintings he made during the years 1934–1936. In 1940, he moved again, to the United States, and was granted American citizenship in 1948. He became a renowned artist and book illustrator when his works were exhibited and published in Poland, France, the United Kingdom, Israel and the United States. However, he gained broad popularity in the United States with his political caricatures, especially after the outbreak of World War II, when he savaged the policies and personalities of the Axis powers' leaders.