Dina Babbitt
Encyclopedia
Dina Gottliebova-Babbitt (January 21, 1923, Brno
, Czechoslovakia
– July 29, 2009) was an artist and Holocaust survivor. A U.S. citizen, she resided in Santa Cruz, California
.
As Dina Gottliebova, she was imprisoned in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp
during WWII, where she drew portraits of Romani inmates for the infamous Dr. Mengele
. Following the liberation of the camp and the end of the war she emigrated to the United States
and became an animator. She had been fighting the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
for the return of her paintings.
, she was chosen by Josef Mengele
to draw portraits of Romani inmates. Mengele wished to capture the Romanis' skin coloration better than he could do it with camera and film at that time. Gottliebova agreed if her own mother's life were spared as well.
As of 2009, seven watercolors
survive, all located in the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
.
According to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
's website
, seven of her portraits of Romani inmates were discovered after World War II
outside the Auschwitz camp in the early 1970s and sold to the Museum by people who apparently did not know that Gottliebova was still alive and living in California
as Dina Babbitt. The Museum asked Babbitt to return to the Auschwitz site in 1973 to identify her work. After she did so, she was informed that the Museum would not allow her to take her paintings home.
Gottliebova-Babbitt formally requested the return of her paintings. The museum rejected her claims.
The U.S. government became involved with House and Senate resolutions. The House version was authored by Representative
Shelley Berkley
. The Senate
version was co-authored by Senator Barbara Boxer
and the former Senator Jesse Helms
. Both became part of the Congressional Record in 2003 and passed unanimously.
In collaboration with Rafael Medoff
, director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, comic-book industry legend Neal Adams
championed Babbitt's efforts. Using text from Medoff, Adams illustrated a six-page graphic documentary about Babbitt that was inked by Joe Kubert
and contains an introduction by Stan Lee
. Adams called the Babbitt situation "tragic" and "an atrocity". In 2008, Adams, the Wyman Institute and Vanguard Publications publisher J. David Spurlock
spearheaded a petition campaign in which over 450 comic book creators and cartoonists urged the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum to return Babbitt's seven portraits.
A reprint of the graphic documentary and an account of Babbitt's plight were included in the final issue of the comic X-Men: Magneto Testament.
A group of students from Palo Alto High School
, led by a teacher, David Rapaport, have worked to help Babbitt by communicating with officials from the State Department to have the paintings returned, and by writing to individuals in the government. They have written a book about this experience.
. She had two daughters, Michele Kane and Karin Babbitt, and three grandchildren, Angela and Elizabeth Chilcott and Jon A. Kane, all of whom have been active in pursuing her claims.
Gottliebova-Babbitt was diagnosed with an aggressive form of abdominal cancer and had surgery on July 23, 2008. She died on July 29, 2009, aged 86.
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
– July 29, 2009) was an artist and Holocaust survivor. A U.S. citizen, she resided in Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, California in the US. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 59,946...
.
As Dina Gottliebova, she was imprisoned in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp
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...
during WWII, where she drew portraits of Romani inmates for the infamous Dr. Mengele
Josef Mengele
Josef Rudolf Mengele , also known as the Angel of Death was a German SS officer and a physician in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. He earned doctorates in anthropology from Munich University and in medicine from Frankfurt University...
. Following the liberation of the camp and the end of the war she emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and became an animator. She had been fighting the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum is a memorial and museum in Oświęcim, Poland , which includes the German concentration camps Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. It is devoted to the memory of the murders in both camps during World War II...
for the return of her paintings.
Paintings
In 1944, while in Auschwitz Concentration CampAuschwitz 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...
, she was chosen by Josef Mengele
Josef Mengele
Josef Rudolf Mengele , also known as the Angel of Death was a German SS officer and a physician in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. He earned doctorates in anthropology from Munich University and in medicine from Frankfurt University...
to draw portraits of Romani inmates. Mengele wished to capture the Romanis' skin coloration better than he could do it with camera and film at that time. Gottliebova agreed if her own mother's life were spared as well.
As of 2009, seven watercolors
Watercolor painting
Watercolor or watercolour , also aquarelle from French, is a painting method. A watercolor is the medium or the resulting artwork in which the paints are made of pigments suspended in a water-soluble vehicle...
survive, all located in the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum is a memorial and museum in Oświęcim, Poland , which includes the German concentration camps Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. It is devoted to the memory of the murders in both camps during World War II...
.
According to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum
The Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum is a memorial and museum in Oświęcim, Poland , which includes the German concentration camps Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. It is devoted to the memory of the murders in both camps during World War II...
's website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, seven of her portraits of Romani inmates were discovered after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
outside the Auschwitz camp in the early 1970s and sold to the Museum by people who apparently did not know that Gottliebova was still alive and living in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
as Dina Babbitt. The Museum asked Babbitt to return to the Auschwitz site in 1973 to identify her work. After she did so, she was informed that the Museum would not allow her to take her paintings home.
Gottliebova-Babbitt formally requested the return of her paintings. The museum rejected her claims.
The U.S. government became involved with House and Senate resolutions. The House version was authored by Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
Shelley Berkley
Shelley Berkley
Rochelle "Shelley" Berkley is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1999, and a candidate for U.S. Senate. She is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education, and legal career:...
. The Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
version was co-authored by Senator Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
and the former Senator Jesse Helms
Jesse Helms
Jesse Alexander Helms, Jr. was a five-term Republican United States Senator from North Carolina who served as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1995 to 2001...
. Both became part of the Congressional Record in 2003 and passed unanimously.
In collaboration with Rafael Medoff
Rafael Medoff
Rafael Medoff is founding director of The David Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, which is based in Washington, D.C. and focuses on issues related to America's response to the Holocaust.-Academic career:...
, director of the David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, comic-book industry legend Neal Adams
Neal Adams
Neal Adams is an American comic book and commercial artist known for helping to create some of the definitive modern imagery of the DC Comics characters Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow; as the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates; and as a creators-rights advocate who...
championed Babbitt's efforts. Using text from Medoff, Adams illustrated a six-page graphic documentary about Babbitt that was inked by Joe Kubert
Joe Kubert
Joe Kubert is an American comic book artist who went on to found The Kubert School. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman...
and contains an introduction by Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
. Adams called the Babbitt situation "tragic" and "an atrocity". In 2008, Adams, the Wyman Institute and Vanguard Publications publisher J. David Spurlock
J. David Spurlock
J. David Spurlock is an author, illustrator, editor, and artist's-rights advocate best known as the founder of Vanguard Productions, a publisher of art books, graphic novels, and prints.-Career:...
spearheaded a petition campaign in which over 450 comic book creators and cartoonists urged the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum to return Babbitt's seven portraits.
A reprint of the graphic documentary and an account of Babbitt's plight were included in the final issue of the comic X-Men: Magneto Testament.
A group of students from Palo Alto High School
Palo Alto High School
Palo Alto Senior High School, known locally as "Paly," was founded in 1898 and is one of the oldest high schools in the region. Located in Palo Alto, California, United States, Paly is nestled in the heart of Silicon Valley, and is adjacent to Stanford University. Paly is known for its academically...
, led by a teacher, David Rapaport, have worked to help Babbitt by communicating with officials from the State Department to have the paintings returned, and by writing to individuals in the government. They have written a book about this experience.
Personal
She was the second wife of animator Art BabbittArt Babbitt
Arthur Harold Babitsky , better known as Art Babbitt, was an American animator, best known for his work at The Walt Disney Company. He received over 80 awards as animation director and animator, but is most famous for creating Goofy...
. She had two daughters, Michele Kane and Karin Babbitt, and three grandchildren, Angela and Elizabeth Chilcott and Jon A. Kane, all of whom have been active in pursuing her claims.
Gottliebova-Babbitt was diagnosed with an aggressive form of abdominal cancer and had surgery on July 23, 2008. She died on July 29, 2009, aged 86.