Born in the city of Łódź in Russian Poland in 1894, Arthur Szyk would become one of the outstanding Jewish painters and illustrators of the 20th century. Seeing himself as a “fighting artist,” Szyk used his work to call attention to the dangers faced by European Jewry in the 1930s and 40s, the evils of Nazism, and the Zionist struggle for Jewish independence. The Times of London called his lavishly illustrated 1940 Haggadah “among the most beautiful of books that the hand of man has ever produced.” Irvin Ungar discusses Szyk’s life and the meaning of his art. (Video, 68 minutes.)
Read more on Menachem Begin Heritage Center: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rRO4vMtvfU