Yehuda Bacon
Encyclopedia
Yehuda Bacon is an Israeli artist (also shown as, especially in German, Jehuda Bacon and Yehuda Bakon).
) family. In the fall of 1942, at the age of 13, Bacon was deported with his family from Ostrava
to the Ghetto Theresienstadt
, where he shared a room with George Brady. In Theresienstadt he played in the children's opera Brundibár
. In December 1943, he was deported to the concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau
, where he and other imprisoned children were used to bedazzle the International Committee of the Red Cross
in the so-called "family camp". In fact, the "Birkenau Boys" were used for transport work in the entire complex of Auschwitz II-Birkenau.
In June 1944, Bacon saw his father murdered in the gas chamber
s. At this time, his mother and his sister Hanna were deported to the Stutthof concentration camp
, where they died a few weeks before its liberation. On January 18, 1945 Bacon was sent on the camp's death march
, which lasted three days and led him through the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
to its subcamp Gunskirchen. In March, Bacon was sent on another death march to a subcamp of Mauthausen, Gunskirchen, in the woods. As he reports, there was no food, water or clothing. On May 5, 1945 Bacon was liberated by the US Army
. Before the SS guards
left the camp, they poisoned the rest of the food. Many inmates had died from the effects of high food supply, which their bodies could not absorb anymore. Bacon and his friend Wolfie Adler (who later became an Israeli rabbi and published a book about his experiences) left the camp. US soldiers brought them to a hospital in the Austrian town Steyr
.
Bacon drove back to Prague
after he recovered more-or-less in a convent run by Catholic nuns. He hoped to see his mother and sisters there again. He lived in an orphanage not far from Prague
in Štiřín, which was established by the Czech educator and humanist Přemysl Pitter. Through him, he found a way to live after the liberation.
, which again set foot on German soil. In 1946 Bacon migrated with the help of the Youth Aliyah
to then Palestine
. There he studied at the prestigious Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, where he also was appointed as a professor of graphic and drawing in 1959, after several study visits in Paris
and London
. The drawings show details and sequences of what he saw in the concentration camps and which he already made as a teenager shortly after the liberation as well as his testimony served as evidence in trails against Nazi criminals (including the Eichmann trial
in Jerusalem and the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials
) and were also used in the litigation against Holocaust denier
David Irving
, who challenges the existence of gas chambers in Auschwitz.
His Œuvre
consists of a fascinating interaction: on the one hand, Bacon processes the experiences of his childhood and youth in the concentration camps, on the other he is searching for a way of understanding through his art. Bacon was early part of interfaith dialogues
and Israeli-Palestinian dialogue in the 1950s. His art is shown in several museums and collections around the world, among the Israel Museum
and Yad Vashem
in Jerusalem, the United States Congress
in Washington D.C., in the homes of Theodore Roosevelt
, John D. Rockefeller
, Martin Buber
and Chaim Weizmann
as well as in London
. Exhibitions have taken him to Germany, the US and the UK.
Life until 1945
Yehuda Bacon was born as a son of a Hasidic (Orthodox JewishOrthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
) family. In the fall of 1942, at the age of 13, Bacon was deported with his family from Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
to the Ghetto Theresienstadt
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
, where he shared a room with George Brady. In Theresienstadt he played in the children's opera Brundibár
Brundibár
Brundibár is a children's opera by Jewish Czech composer Hans Krása with a libretto by Adolf Hoffmeister, originally performed by the children of Theresienstadt concentration camp in occupied Czechoslovakia...
. In December 1943, he was deported to the concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
, where he and other imprisoned children were used to bedazzle the International Committee of the Red Cross
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an international humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide which was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and to prevent and alleviate human...
in the so-called "family camp". In fact, the "Birkenau Boys" were used for transport work in the entire complex of Auschwitz II-Birkenau.
In June 1944, Bacon saw his father murdered in the gas chamber
Gas chamber
A gas chamber is an apparatus for killing humans or animals with gas, consisting of a sealed chamber into which a poisonous or asphyxiant gas is introduced. The most commonly used poisonous agent is hydrogen cyanide; carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide have also been used...
s. At this time, his mother and his sister Hanna were deported to the Stutthof concentration camp
Stutthof concentration camp
Stutthof was the first Nazi concentration camp built outside of 1937 German borders.Completed on September 2, 1939, it was located in a secluded, wet, and wooded area west of the small town of Sztutowo . The town is located in the former territory of the Free City of Danzig, 34 km east of...
, where they died a few weeks before its liberation. On January 18, 1945 Bacon was sent on the camp's death march
Death marches (Holocaust)
The death marches refer to the forcible movement between Autumn 1944 and late April 1945 by Nazi Germany of thousands of prisoners from German concentration camps near the war front to camps inside Germany.-General:...
, which lasted three days and led him through the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen Concentration Camp grew to become a large group of Nazi concentration camps that was built around the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Upper Austria, roughly east of the city of Linz.Initially a single camp at Mauthausen, it expanded over time and by the summer of 1940, the...
to its subcamp Gunskirchen. In March, Bacon was sent on another death march to a subcamp of Mauthausen, Gunskirchen, in the woods. As he reports, there was no food, water or clothing. On May 5, 1945 Bacon was liberated by the US Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. Before the SS guards
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
left the camp, they poisoned the rest of the food. Many inmates had died from the effects of high food supply, which their bodies could not absorb anymore. Bacon and his friend Wolfie Adler (who later became an Israeli rabbi and published a book about his experiences) left the camp. US soldiers brought them to a hospital in the Austrian town Steyr
Steyr
Steyr is a town, located in the Austrian federal state of Upper Austria. The town is situated at the confluence of the rivers Steyr and Enns. Steyr is Austria's 12th most populated town and simultaneously the 3rd largest town in Upper Austria....
.
Bacon drove back to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
after he recovered more-or-less in a convent run by Catholic nuns. He hoped to see his mother and sisters there again. He lived in an orphanage not far from Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in Štiřín, which was established by the Czech educator and humanist Přemysl Pitter. Through him, he found a way to live after the liberation.
Life after liberation and migration to Israel
After liberation, Bacon decided to become an artist — to process his experiences and to try to describe what he lived through. As a survivor he feels a responsibility to tell his story and to teach to future generations to make them aware of their responsibility in the present and the future. He was among the first survivors of the ShoahShoah
Shoah may refer to:*The Holocaust*Shoah , documentary directed by Claude Lanzmann * A Shoah Foundation...
, which again set foot on German soil. In 1946 Bacon migrated with the help of the Youth Aliyah
Youth Aliyah
Szold was initially skeptical about the merits of Freier's proposal, as she believed that Germany offered better educational opportunities for Jewish children than Palestine. However, Hitler's rise to power convinced her otherwise. The Nuremberg Laws were enacted in 1935 and on 31 March 1936 German...
to then Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. There he studied at the prestigious Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, where he also was appointed as a professor of graphic and drawing in 1959, after several study visits in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The drawings show details and sequences of what he saw in the concentration camps and which he already made as a teenager shortly after the liberation as well as his testimony served as evidence in trails against Nazi criminals (including the Eichmann trial
Adolf Eichmann
Adolf Otto Eichmann was a German Nazi and SS-Obersturmbannführer and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust...
in Jerusalem and the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials
Frankfurt Auschwitz trials
The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials, known in German as der Auschwitz-Prozess or der zweite Auschwitz-Prozess, was a series of trials running from December 20, 1963 to August 10, 1965, charging 22 defendants under German penal law for their roles in the Holocaust as mid- to lower-level officials in the...
) and were also used in the litigation against Holocaust denier
Holocaust denial
Holocaust denial is the act of denying the genocide of Jews in World War II, usually referred to as the Holocaust. The key claims of Holocaust denial are: the German Nazi government had no official policy or intention of exterminating Jews, Nazi authorities did not use extermination camps and gas...
David Irving
David Irving
David John Cawdell Irving is an English writer,best known for his denial of the Holocaust, who specialises in the military and political history of World War II, with a focus on Nazi Germany...
, who challenges the existence of gas chambers in Auschwitz.
His Œuvre
Work of art
A work of art, artwork, art piece, or art object is an aesthetic item or artistic creation.The term "a work of art" can apply to:*an example of fine art, such as a painting or sculpture*a fine work of architecture or landscape design...
consists of a fascinating interaction: on the one hand, Bacon processes the experiences of his childhood and youth in the concentration camps, on the other he is searching for a way of understanding through his art. Bacon was early part of interfaith dialogues
Interfaith
The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...
and Israeli-Palestinian dialogue in the 1950s. His art is shown in several museums and collections around the world, among the Israel Museum
Israel Museum
The Israel Museum, Jerusalem was founded in 1965 as Israel's national museum. It is situated on a hill in the Givat Ram neighborhood of Jerusalem, near the Bible Lands Museum, the Knesset, the Israeli Supreme Court, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
and Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament....
in Jerusalem, the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
in Washington D.C., in the homes of Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, John D. Rockefeller
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller was an American oil industrialist, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of...
, Martin Buber
Martin Buber
Martin Buber was an Austrian-born Jewish philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of religious existentialism centered on the distinction between the I-Thou relationship and the I-It relationship....
and Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....
as well as in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Exhibitions have taken him to Germany, the US and the UK.
External links
- Yehuda Bacon Webpage
- Yehuda and Leah Bacon Fellowship (German)
- Interview with his daughter, BBC journalist Hanna White
- http://www1.yadvashem.org/exhibitions/museums/art_museum/bacon.htmlYehuda Bacon in the Yad VashemYad VashemYad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament....
exhibitions, Jerusalem] - Special Exhibition in Yad Vashem
- Bezalel Academy Jerusalem
- Bacon exhibition in the Museum am Dom Würzburg (German)
- Art and Holocaust