Joseph Bau
Encyclopedia
Joseph Bau was a graphic artist and poet, survivor of the Płaszów Nazi concentration camp of World War II
.
. While in Plaszow, Bau created a miniature - the size of his hand - illustrated book with his own poetry. He also forged documents and identity papers for people who managed to escape from the camp.
During his imprisonment, Bau fell in love with another inmate, Rebecca Tennenbaum. They were secretly married, despite prohibition by the Germans, in the women's barracks of Plaszow. The history was dramatized in Steven Spielberg
's Academy Award winning movie Schindler's List
.
After Plashow, Bau was transferred to Gross-Rosen concentration camp
and then to Oscar Schindler's, camp where he stayed till the end of the war. After liberation, Bau graduated from the University of Plastic Arts in Kraków. In 1950, he immigrated to Israel
together with his wife and three year old daughter, where he worked as a graphic artist at the Brandwein Institute in Haifa
and for the government of Israel. Bau opened his own studio in 1956 in Tel Aviv
. He was well known for drawing titles for almost all Israeli movies in the 1960s and 70s. At the same time, he authored a number of Hebrew
books and continued to write poetry.
Joseph Bau also creates his own animated films, for which he has been referred to in the press as the "Israeli Walt Disney." His paintings and drawings have been listed by Sotheby's as significant contributions to the art of the Holocaust and his works have been shown in galleries in New York, Baltimore, Chicago, and Minneapolis.
Joseph Bau's art is filtered through the prism of his own experiences. It reflects both the brutal reality of life during the war, as well as the joy and humour he observed in later years in Israel. Joseph Bau was nominated for the prestigious Israel Prize
in 1998.
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...
.
Biography
Bau was trained as a graphic artist at the University for Plastic Arts in Kraków, Poland. His education was interrupted by World War II and he was transferred to the Plaszow concentration camp in late 1941. Having a talent in gothic lettering, he was employed in the camp for making signs and maps for the GermansNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. While in Plaszow, Bau created a miniature - the size of his hand - illustrated book with his own poetry. He also forged documents and identity papers for people who managed to escape from the camp.
During his imprisonment, Bau fell in love with another inmate, Rebecca Tennenbaum. They were secretly married, despite prohibition by the Germans, in the women's barracks of Plaszow. The history was dramatized in Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's Academy Award winning movie Schindler's List
Schindler's List
Schindler's List is a 1993 American film about Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved the lives of more than a thousand mostly Polish-Jewish refugees during the Holocaust by employing them in his factories. The film was directed by Steven Spielberg, and based on the novel Schindler's Ark...
.
After Plashow, Bau was transferred to Gross-Rosen concentration camp
Gross-Rosen concentration camp
KL Gross-Rosen was a German concentration camp, located in Gross-Rosen, Lower Silesia . It was located directly on the rail line between Jauer and Striegau .-The camp:...
and then to Oscar Schindler's, camp where he stayed till the end of the war. After liberation, Bau graduated from the University of Plastic Arts in Kraków. In 1950, he immigrated to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
together with his wife and three year old daughter, where he worked as a graphic artist at the Brandwein Institute in Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
and for the government of Israel. Bau opened his own studio in 1956 in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. He was well known for drawing titles for almost all Israeli movies in the 1960s and 70s. At the same time, he authored a number of Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
books and continued to write poetry.
Work
The English version of Joseph Bau's memoir, Dear God, Have You Ever Gone Hungry?, first published in Hebrew and Polish, came out in June, 1998 and was published in several versions (in Chinese, among others).Joseph Bau also creates his own animated films, for which he has been referred to in the press as the "Israeli Walt Disney." His paintings and drawings have been listed by Sotheby's as significant contributions to the art of the Holocaust and his works have been shown in galleries in New York, Baltimore, Chicago, and Minneapolis.
Joseph Bau's art is filtered through the prism of his own experiences. It reflects both the brutal reality of life during the war, as well as the joy and humour he observed in later years in Israel. Joseph Bau was nominated for the prestigious Israel Prize
Israel Prize
The Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
in 1998.