My Great-Grandfather's Bible
Art, family, love...a project by Janis Loewengart Yerington Biblical illustrations painted on driftwood, explore art, faith and the incredible journey of my great-grandfather, who escaped war torn Europe in 1941 while carrying an elephant folio Gustave Dore Old Testament.
During the Holocaust my Great-Grandfather, Max Loewengart, fled for his life carrying our gigantic family bible. Almost 75 years later I was welcomed back to Germany and his village. My art was exhibited in the very sanctuary my ancestors used to worship. Please take some time to listen to the voice story, further down on this page, and peruse the rest of this lengthy website which, like my art, is a labor of love. With love and thanks, Janis
The Deluge
And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only rmained alive, and they that were with him in the ark...(Genesis 7:23)
acrylic, gouache and water color crayon on driftwood
by Janis Loewengart Yerington
detail of The Finding of Moses
And when she (the daughter of Pharoah) had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews' children...Genesis 2:3,4)
acrylic, gouache and water color crayon on driftwood
by Janis Loewengart Yerington
...that when it can, your art would follow nature, just as a pupil imitates his master; so that your art is almost God's grandchild. That this your art as far as possible Follows, as the disciple doth the master; So that your art is, as it were, God's grandchild.
From these two, art and nature, it is fitting, if you recall how Genesis begins, for men to make their way, to gain their living; From these two, if thou bringest to thy mind Genesis at the beginning, it behoves Mankind to gain their life and to advance... -Dante
Rexingen
My ancestors lived in this beautiful village in Germany for hundreds of years until the Holocaust.
An excellent website explaining much of the history : http://www.ehemalige-synagoge-rexingen.de/en/former-synagogue/history-of-the-community
A chronicle of the Jewish Cemetary in Rexingen:In Stein gehauen: Lebensspuren auf dem judischen Friedhof in Rexingen : Dokumentation des Friedhofs und des Schicksals der 300 Jahre in Rexingen ... Friedhofe der Stadt Horb) (German Edition)
Max Loewengart
birth: 1877, Germany
death: July 27,1956 USA
My paternal Great-Grandfather, Max Loewengart, who carried the elephant folio family bible from port to port across war torn Europe and has inpired this story and my art.
Immigrating to America
I am thankful to the Joint Distribution Committee for the part they played in helping my Great-Grandfather find safe passage to the States. He was a happy man and thoroughly enjoyed his family and life in New York City.
...fill the pages of our family bible. My father looked at these illustrations when he was young. and as a child I pored over them as well. As victorian France's most pre-eminent illustrator, Gustave's visual genius informed generations to come of the stories of the Bible.