David Friedmann (a.k.a. David Friedman) was an accomplished artist long before World War II and the Holocaust. As each of his options narrowed, he continued to produce art illustrating the events and personal experiences of his time.
In October 1941, he was deported to the Lodz Ghetto, then to camps Auschwitz-Birkenau and Gleiwitz I. He survived a Death March to Camp Blechhammer in Upper Silesia, where he was liberated on January 25, 1945 by the Red Army. His desire was to show the world the ruthless persecution, torment, and agony as practiced by the Nazis, in the hope that such barbarism would never happen again. In 1949, he fled Stalinist Czechoslovakia to Israel and later immigrated to the United States.
"Enjoyment in Libraries" Pencil Drawings
While in the United States, it was his trips to libraries that offered him the necessary respite from the torment and agony of his memories. The artist said, "I needed to forget about the concentration camps and the horror that was there. So it was a pleasure to go to the library."
The artist's daughter, Miriam Friedman Morris of Pomona, NY, donated her father's pencil drawings, "Enjoyment in Libraries with the Candid Pencil of David Friedman 1962-1972" to the Finkelstein Memorial Library and it is our great pleasure to share them with you in this online exhibit.
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View Thumbnails of the Library Images
David Friedman Links
David Friedman -- "Because...They Were Jews!"
David Friedman --Timeline: Artist as a Witness
David Friedman (1893-1980) Biography