On Monday, April 8, 2013, the Levenstein family, the Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Toronto and the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library sponsored a special lecture in memory of Larry Levenstein, a long-time Friend of the Fisher Library. Shalom Sabar, Professor of Jewish Art and Folklore at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, gave a talk titled ‘Political Justice and the Image of the New Jew: The Historical and Artistic Context of the Szyk Haggadah.’ Professor Sabar’s talk focused on Arthur Szyk, who was a prolific Polish-Jewish artist active between the two World Wars and during and after World War II. His undisputed masterpiece is an illustrated Haggadah, produced during the period leading up to World War II. It was first published in London in 1940 and recently reproduced in a sumptuous facsimile edition by Historicana. This talk examined Szyk’s artistic production in its political and historical context. Audio of the lecture can be listened to here: http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca/lectures-audio
