Auction 66 - Rare and Important Items
Saul Raskin – "On the Rivers of Babylon" – Oil Painting
Opening: $4,000
Estimate: $5,000 - $8,000
Unsold
"On the Rivers of Babylon", painting by Saul Raskin (1878-1966).
Oil on wood. Signed.
The painting, showing Raskin's interpretation of Psalms 137 ("On the rivers of Babylon there we wept, when we remembered Zion…"), depicts a group of Jewish exiles beside a river, a chained man at their head, and beside them weeping trees, with lyres and a violin hanging from their drooping branches.
In 1942, the Book of Psalms, illustrated by Raskin, was published in New-York, containing also the picture before us. Several of Raskin's illustrations for the book were affected by the events of World War II and reflect the spirit of the times. This influence can be seen to a certain extent in this picture too, especially in the way Raskin chose to present the Jewish figures.
Saul Raskin (1878-1966) was born in Ukraine, studied litography in Odessa and later studied art in Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy. In ca. 1904, he emigrated to the USA, there he worked at drawing caricatures for Yiddish periodicals, illustrating books and writing art critique.
Many of his works dealt with Jewish tradition, including his illustrations for the Avot tractate, the Passover Haggadah and the Five Scrolls. Raskin, who defined himself as a Zionist, visited Palestine several times and painted its views and inhabitants. Some of these paintings was published in the book "Erezt Yisrael in Vort un Bild" ("Palestine in Words and Pictures". New York, 1925).
74.5X62 cm.
Oil on wood. Signed.
The painting, showing Raskin's interpretation of Psalms 137 ("On the rivers of Babylon there we wept, when we remembered Zion…"), depicts a group of Jewish exiles beside a river, a chained man at their head, and beside them weeping trees, with lyres and a violin hanging from their drooping branches.
In 1942, the Book of Psalms, illustrated by Raskin, was published in New-York, containing also the picture before us. Several of Raskin's illustrations for the book were affected by the events of World War II and reflect the spirit of the times. This influence can be seen to a certain extent in this picture too, especially in the way Raskin chose to present the Jewish figures.
Saul Raskin (1878-1966) was born in Ukraine, studied litography in Odessa and later studied art in Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy. In ca. 1904, he emigrated to the USA, there he worked at drawing caricatures for Yiddish periodicals, illustrating books and writing art critique.
Many of his works dealt with Jewish tradition, including his illustrations for the Avot tractate, the Passover Haggadah and the Five Scrolls. Raskin, who defined himself as a Zionist, visited Palestine several times and painted its views and inhabitants. Some of these paintings was published in the book "Erezt Yisrael in Vort un Bild" ("Palestine in Words and Pictures". New York, 1925).
74.5X62 cm.
Paintings and Graphic Art
Paintings and Graphic Art