Fischke der Krumme ["Fischke the Lame"] (adapted into Hebrew as "Sefer HaKabtzanim"), portfolio comprising 16 original lithographs by Rahel Szalit-Marcus. Berlin: Propyläen Verlag, [1922]. German.
Copy no. 68 out of 100 copies. Lithographs all signed by the artist.
16 lithographs illustrating scenes from the novel "Fischke der Krumme" ["Fischke the Lame"] by Mendele Mocher Sforim. The novel was first published in Yiddish in 1869; over the years, expanded versions of the novel were published, including the Hebrew-language version, titled "Sefer HaKabtzanim" ["Book of the Beggars"].
Copy no. 68 out of 100 numbered copies. Each lithograph has been signed by Szalit-Marcus.
The portfolio comprises a title page, an introduction, and discussions of the depicted scenes from Mendele Mocher Sforim's story by the art historian Julius Elias (1861-1927).
Rahel Szalit-Marcus (1894-1942), Jewish painter and illustrator. Grew up in Lodz, studied art in Munich. Active in Berlin, 1916-33. Associated with Berlin's bohemian circles. She was friendly with such artists as Ludwig Meidner, Jacob Steinhardt, and others, and belonged to the Modernist artists' group known as the "Novembergruppe, " which functioned in the early days of the Weimar Republic and identified with the revolutionary Left. Displayed some of her works at the "Verein der Berliner Künstlerinnen" exhibition – alongside Käthe Kollwitz and Julie Wolfthorn – and at exhibitions staged by the "Berlin Secession" movement. In the early 1920s, she began creating illustrations for literary works, including Heinrich Heine's "Hebräische Melodien" ("Hebrew Melodies"), Sholem Aleichem's "Motl Peysi dem Khazns" ("Motl, Peysi the Cantor's Son"), Israel Zangwill's "The King of Schnorrers, " Fyodor Dostoevsky's "The Crocodile, " and other writings. Rahel was married to the successful stage actor Julius Szalit (1892-1919?).