A literary anthology and a volume of poetry by Moshe Lifshitz. Riga (Latvia): Arbeterheim, 1921-1922. Yiddish. Illustrations by Mikhail Yo (Meyer Yofe).
1. Ofn Shvel [On the Threshold]. 1921.
Literary anthology containing poetry, prose and essays, as well as illustrations by Mikhail Yo and four plates with reproductions of works by Mikhail Yo and by V. Hirschberg.
32 pp + [4] plates, 24.5 cm. Stains. Several small tears to edges. Stains and small tears to cover.
2. A Ber Tantzt [A Dancing Bear], by Moishe Livshitz [Moshe Lifshitz]. 1922.
Poems by Moshe Lifshitz. Cover illustration and two illustrations inside the anthology by Mikhail Yo.
51, [1] pp, approx. 19 cm. Good condition. Folds and small tears at the corners of several leaves. Minor worming. Stains throughout the booklet and on the cover. Minor tears to edges of cover.
Meyer Yofe (1895-1960), who worked under the pen name Mikhail Yo, was a graphic artist, painter and theoretician, one of the central figures of Riga's cultural and artistic life. He illustrated books published by the Arbeterheim publishing house, which was the center of Kultur Lige activity in Latvia in the 1920s. Yofe was a member of the "Sambatyon" group founded by the Kultur Lige in Riga, and also worked at the Jewish theater of Riga and the State Jewish theater in Moscow.