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Page 13
The Southern Israelite
If 1th Our Jewish Artists
By JUDITH I. STEIN
ular tradition that every suc-
rist must endure trials and
,,s before he is af)le most
express himself is upheld in
,,f Nathan Koslowsky. This
■ wish artist, who has only
\merica four years, has al-
.,. t (le a place for himself in
.lav artistic circles. Recently,
t rvievv, he described his child-
I his colorful experiences in
■ hinny the World War.
A iitluni Koslowsky
than Koslowsky was horn in Rus-
" the "Meloviez” forest, in a Ger-
l ’”l" n y >n the country of Grodus.
t ith. r was manager of the sur-
forests in this region and
ttnly was compelled to live as
- possible to the neighborhood
the lather worked. When Na-
" ;t ' a s,,l all hoy they moved to
11 "i Krinky, so that the chil-
nuV’lit receive some schooling
e artist, speaking of his early
111 ■* t 1< .11, saj ( | :
van to attend a Cheder at the
ttve and at five and a half I
1 beyun to study ‘Chumesh’.
heder they taught us to read,
"rite, so I kept on copy-
hler brother’s Jewish books,
'■‘ge, and in that way I learned
't iddish.
a year later I learned to read
Russian the same way. Fig-
arithmetic I learned from the
At the age of eight and a
rgan to attend the Talmud
l! 'd a Russian Folk School,
attracted the attention of the
teachers, and Rabbis by draw-
* and ornaments on paper,
'odcarvings, but especially by
ures I drew of my teachers.
°nce, when the laughter of
ates drew the attention of
rs to my caricatures I was
unished.
- 1,1 >' lather lost his position
'' America, where he tried
his family, who had re-
ihe other side. He kept
entreating me, in each letter, to be
come a Rabbi. Then came the World
War. I was studying at the time at
the Bialystoker Yeshiva. Our family,
consisting of six children, of whom I
was the second, was destitute, for nei
ther money nor letters could be re
ceived from America.
“In 1915 the Germans occupied our
town. I was sent to a compulsory tier-
man school. There I found a sched
ule which allowed for drawing and
painting two hours a week. It was a
great joy to me at first, but disappoint
ment came soon enough, for when the
teacher found out I could draw, he
made me draw for the class and the
pupils copied my drawings.
“Later I went on foot to the town
Parazowa, fifty kilometers from Kinkry,
where I studi *d in a German school.
I also studied Hebrew and Talmud
there. \\ hen the commander of that
town heard that I could draw, he or
dered me to come to him for a few
hours each day. He made me draw
portraits of Von Hindenberg, Wilhelm,
and others. Besides, I had to make all
kinds of signs for the nearby towns
and villages. I was paid next to noth
ing for my work. Six months later
I returned on foot to Krinky.
“My brother and I then began to
wander through the villages, seeking
any kind of work, to support our fam
ily. I worked at many odd jobs: some
times as a shepherd, sometimes as a
hay cutter, etc. However, through it
all I continued to draw and paint.
Rich peasant women sometimes or
dered monograms, portraits, or orna
ments, but paid for my work according
to their own good-will.
“One day I received an order to
draw a portrait of the organist of the
church. The priest saw it and prom
ised to send me to a famous art school
on condition that I become a Catholic.
My reaction to that proposition was
such that I began tcf ponder deeply
over the conception of Jew and Gen
tile, and in the end I became an en
thusiastic Jewish nationalist.
“In 1918 the Germans left our prov
inces and the Polish took their places.
It became impossible to find work, for
each Jew was suspected as a commu
nist, a Polish enemy. I had to return
to Krinky. In 1920 I became art in
structor in the Jewish school there.
Two years later I went to Warsaw,
where I was attending special courses
for teachers in drawing and handicraft.
While there I was recommended as art
instructor for the Bialystoker Jewish
schools. There I began to work on
colored illustrations for children’s
stories.
“In 1926 I came to New York and
began to illustrate various children’s
books, at the same time working in
the Sholem Aleichem schools as art
instructor. I attended the National
Academy of Design and later the Stu
dents Art League.”
Since coming to America Mr. Kos-
(Continued on page 55)
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