Dear Friends,
This yearning to be out and about, after this long and cold winter! Every year I marvel at the blooming trees and flowers and am reminded of the power of renewal.
In addition to our online events, we are promoting two special in person events here in New York this month, and I hope to meet many of you who live in or around New York or are here for a visit.
May is Jewish American Heritage Month, a commemoration of Jewish contributions to American culture and the celebration of the history, culture and achievements of the diverse Jewish community in the U.S. Our first virtual lecture of the month looks at early Jewish Immigrant Artists:
WEDNESDAY, May 6, 12:00PM ET online
Early Drawings and Cartoons by Jewish Immigrant Artists,
ca. 1900-1920
Presentation by Matthew Baigell,
Rutgers University Professor Emeritus
In this talk, Rutgers University professor emeritus Matthew Baigell discusses early Jewish immigrant artists and cartoonists. As millions of Jews immigrated to the United States from Eastern Europe starting in the 1870s, they brought with them not only their religious heritage but also a definitive idea of the place and value of art and aesthetics in society. Around 1900 they established a Jewish art stream separate from mainstream American art that continues to the present day. To a greater or lesser degree over the decades, artists have continually emphasized community values, politics, and religious heritage.
Matthew Baigell is professor emeritus in art history at Rutgers University. He has written, co-authored, and co-edited twenty-four books on mainstream American and Jewish American art. His most recent book is Heritage: Jewish Artists in America Since 1900 (2026), the first book in which a continuous, separate art stream has been identified.
This event is part of the online series Flight or Fight. stories of artists under repression.
Later this month, we hear about the once prominent German Jewish artist and collector Eugen Spiro (1874-1972), who fled Nazi persecution to New York in 1941:
WEDNESDAY, May 20, 12:00PM ET onlineStolen Jewish Legacies:
The Fate of Eugen Spiro and His Looted Collection
Presentation by Anne Uhrlandt, Munich (Germany)
In this online lecture Anne Uhrlandt will present the forgotten story of once prominent German Jewish artist and collector Eugen Spiro (April 18, 1874, Wrocław-September 26, 1972, New York City). During her two-year research project, Uhrlandt reconstructed the artist’s biography and the fate of his looted collection by bringing together evidence and sources from numerous international archives. Two case studies about specific stolen objects highlight the dramatic events following both the Nazi government ‘s expulsion of Spiro from his profession, robbing him of his sources of income, and the theft of his art collection, which included both his own works of art and works of art by other artists. The case studies demonstrate the potential of provenance research to uncover and reconstruct the rich Jewish contribution to European cultural history before World War II.
Anne Uhrlandt is a doctoral candidate with more than 20 years of experience working as a provenance researcher specialized in Nazi-looted cultural property. Prior to her job at JDCRP as Senior Research and Documentation Officer, she was project coordinator at the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte in Munich, working as well for the Art Loss Register. She worked previously for the Jewish Museum of Munich.
This event is part of the online series Flight or Fight. stories of artists under repression.
This month, we invite you to two special in person events in New York:
On Thursday, May 14th, at 5:30pm, curator Irvin Ungar will give a tour of the exhibition Art of Freedom: The Life & Work of Arthur Szyk at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
At 7:00pm, the artist Arthur Szyk will be celebrated at the Museum of Jewish Heritage with a book launch with Irvin Ungar.
Once world-famous, Arthur Szyk was all but forgotten after his death in 1951. Reviving the Artist Who Fought Hitler recounts Irvin Ungar’s decades-long journey to restore Szyk to public consciousness, and become the principal collector, dealer, scholar, and promoter of Szyk’s art in the United States, Europe, and Israel. Richly illustrated and full of forgotten history, this memoir is an inspiring story of artistic passion and an invitation to commune with a heroic advocate for all humanity.
The discussion of the book will be followed by a book signing with Irvin Ungar.
The exhibition is on view until July 26 – you can find more information below.
On Wednesday, May 27th, 6:30-8:00pm, the artist Ceija Stojka (1933-2013) will be celebrated at The Drawing Center with a conversation between curator Lynne Cooke and artist Ulrike Müller on the impactful legacy of Roma artist and activist Ceija Stojka, on the occasion of the last days of the exhibition Ceija Stojka: Making Visible.
The exhibition will be on view until June 7th, 2026 – you can find more information below.
RECORDINGS OF OUR VIRTUAL APRIL EVENT
FEATURED EXHIBITIONS
This month, we recommend two exhibitions here in New York – both can be seen free of charge during very special in-person events with the curators (see above):
Ceija Stojka: Making Visible is on view until June 7, 2026, at The Drawing Center, NYC.
Ceija Stojka: Making Visible features the work of Roma artist, activist, writer, lyricist, and singer Ceija Stojka (1933-2013). Comprising more than sixty artworks, as well as a selection of sketchbooks, archival material, and documentary films made during Stojka’s lifetime, the exhibit explores the fullness of Stojka’s production as a visual artist, centered in her Roma life and heritage. Spurred by the resurgence of extreme right nationalism in Austria and abroad, and by her experiences as a Holocaust survivor, Stojka created works of profound beauty and horror that resonate today in strikingly contemporary terms.
Arthur Szyk was a leading anti-Fascist political caricaturist as well as an advocate for Jewish rescue. His work is now exhibited in New York:
Art of Freedom: The Life & Work of Arthur Szyk is on view until July 26 at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in NYC.
A showcase of Arthur Szyk’s decades-spanning artistic career connects his biblical-themed illuminations, illustrations of the heroes of democracy, scathing anti-Nazi cartoons, and artistic expressions of his Zionism into a dynamic exploration of the meaning of “freedom.”
At the core of his work lies a steadfast belief in the power of visual expression to confront atrocity, mobilize righteousness, and promote freedom in all its forms (religious, national, cultural, and political), not just for Jews but for all humanity.
You can find out more about Arthur Szyk in our online exhibition:
Szyk’s work is discussed by Irvin Ungar and Steven Luckert from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in one of our past virtual events:
