The Holocaust, By Jacob Landau And His Circle

The Holocaust Suite: The Holocaust by Jacob Landau & His Circle, the medium is a lithograph. The painting is part of a whole collection of about six paintings by the artist known as The Holocaust Suite that shows a different take the artist has taken on the Holocaust. In this particular painting, the subject matter six distorted figures and the setting being the Holocaust since this is what the title tells us. The type of representation that this painting is abstract because forms of the visual world are distorted which we see in the figures bodies. Jacob Landau was a printmaker, painter, humanist and teacher. His works explored the primary themes of human existence and morality that I believe is why he decided to do some of his paintings on

the Holocaust. Many of Landau works have to deal with how events have impacted people and their surroundings.
The Holocaust was a significant event that impacted our society due to the mistreatment and genocide of a specific group of people.

The images and talks from survivors showcase the mental and physical abuse the Jews, and many other groups had to endure during the Holocaust that lasted for 12 years. The figures bodies in the painting are skinny, not a lot of clothing is on them, their heads are large but faces look very thin, and the figures are each facing different directions. In my opinion, I feel that the interpretation of this piece is trying to showcase how detrimental the Holocaust was to people in their physical appearance. He wants the audience to feel the emotion that the people of the Holocaust were feeling. The painting expresses abstraction as well as loose lines throughout the piece. It is clear in the picture that these figures do not look healthy nor happy in the condition they are in. The color of the painting black and white, also shows that this is not supposed to be a happy

moment.
The particular medium that is used for The Holocaust is a lithograph.

The texture of the painting is smooth. The colors used are black and white. The black gives the picture a dark look while the white does give the art some light to balance out the black. The uses of the colors black and white do provide a feeling of despair and darkness. There are four humans and four circles connected to each circle. There are also four rectangles which each human body is in. The four figures all seem hunched over and all set up in a line. The shape of the of the bodies of each of the figures each differs. Starting from the left, the first figure is upside down with legs and arms crossed. The figure also has a button down striped shirt but no bottoms. The face of the figure you can see his eyes, nose, and facial hair. The expression on his face seems blank. The next figure is faced upright. This figure has one arm up and has more layers on top of his body compared to the first figure. This figures face you can see more, and it looks like he is concerned when you look at how his eyebrows look. The next figure, the person is faced upside down with no clothing on their body. The figure's arms are crossed which seems like they are covering the top half of their body. The facial expression of this figure is more depicted and has a desolate look on its face. The next figure is standing upright and has many swirls and lines that cover its body. The figure is pointing toward the left with its

other arm raised. There is hair on this figure, and his face is not faced front but is looking away. The last two figures their bodies look very disfigured, and their faces are not easily depicted, unlike the other figures. This painting is scaled evenly throughout. There are about five lines that you can see throughout the painting, and each figure has their box except the last two figures. Each figure has their space that is not overlapping one another. The lighting, color, and different painting technique used on each painting show an emphasis on what the artist wanted to highlight. The fact that each figure is drawn differently there is a sense a unity because each figures facial expression is not filled with any happiness. The painting shows integration because each figure has some pain being shown.
The Holocaust Suite: The Holocaust can be found in Pollak Gallery. It is apart of the exhibition Jacob Landau & His Circle. Landau was all about demonstrating human existence and morality through events that caused emotion in people. This painting goes along with what Landau wants his audience to convey about his work. I believe he wants to provoke emotion and thoughts through his paintings to put us in the shoes of people that have gone through an experience that hurt them. This piece to me represents the hurt that the people of the Holocaust had to deal with. In the piece, there are no bright colors, and the way each figure is depicted shows some pain being expressed.
To sum up, The Holocaust Suite: The Holocaust by Jacob Landau provokes the emotion of the reality of people through a painful experience. Landau was able to use many principles of design as well as visual design to get his point across to his audience. His paintings tell a story that a viewer can convey their own opinion but quickly grasp what the artist is trying to portray in the end.