us-005578-irn47124-irn48085
type: RecordSet
archival history: The drawing was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2012 by Alessandra Bergstrom, George Lazar, Stephen Lazar, and Linda Walker, the children of Emeric Lazar.
biographical history: Imre (Emeric) Lazar was born on July 8, 1903, in Vagbeszterce, Hungary, to a Jewish couple, Moritz (Maurice) and Malvine Rosenfeld Lazar. Moritz, a businessman, was born in 1878 in Vagbeszterce. Malvine was born in 1877 in Vienna, Austria. Soon after Imre’s birth, the family moved to Budapest. Imre’s brother Gyorgy, was born on June 18, 1906. The boys grew up with private teachers and governesses. When Imre was twelve, he began music lessons. He later studied music and composition in Budapest. In September 1928, Imre, now Emeric, was living in Pars. He had moved there to study at the Paris Conservatoire under Alfred Cortot, specializing in the piano. He performed solo and with his own orchestra, appearing in shows with Josephine Baker and touring with Jeannette MacDonald, and composed several popular songs. In 1933, Emeric became the house composer and a conductor for Le Casino de Paris. In 1939, his father Moritz died of heart disease in Budapest. Germany invaded France on May 10, 1940. On June 22, France signed an armistice with Germany and Paris became the seat of the German military occupation in northern and western France. In August 1941, the Germans established Drancy internment camp in Paris to detain foreign born Jews. The camp was administered by French police until July 1943 when it was taken over by the German and an SS officer, Alois Brunner, was made commandant. Emeric was imprisoned in Drancy on August 21, 1941. By the summer of 1942, Drancy was a major transit camp for the deportation of Jews from France to concentration camps in Poland. Emeric acquired a copy of a French baptismal certificate, under the name Emeric Mattheiu Lazar, on July 10, 1942. He was released from Drancy on February 22, 1943. Emeric remained in Paris, living in hiding with the assistance of friends. The German forces in Paris surrendered on August 25, 1944. After liberation, Emeric worked in an American Red Cross nightclub; the French clubs were closed. While working at the clu…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Pencil portrait drawing on light brown, stained paper depicting a young man with dark, expressive eyes and a direct, intense gaze. He wears a la deffe apache style cap and has a thin mustache and goatee. His upper face is heavily shaded with pink coloring on the cheeks and chin. His torso is outlined and lightly shaded at the shoulders. He wears a turtleneck and an outer coat with a black shaded, raised collar. His right hand, palm inward, with slightly bent fingers and outstretched thumb, is raise to chest level. His left hand is faintly thinly outlined. The artist’s signature and the date are penciled on the lower right corner.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: Restrictions on use
date: 1943 January 02
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn48085
is or was included in: us-005578-irn47124
record resource extent: overall: Height: 8.250 inches (20.955 cm) | Width: 11.625 inches (29.528 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Portrait drawing of a young man in a cap created by Emeric Lazar in January 1943 while imprisoned in Drancy internment camp in Paris, France. Emeric had come to Paris from Budapest in 1928 to study music. He was the house composer at Le Casino de Paris when Nazi Germany invaded France in May 1940. France surrendered in June and Paris became the seat of the German military occupation. Anti-Jewish measures were enacted and, in August, an internment camp for foreign Jews was established in Drancy, a northeastern suburb of Paris. Emeric was imprisoned there on August 21, 1941. The camp became a major transit center for the deportation of Jews. In the summer of 1942, the Germans systematically deported Jews from Drancy to killing centers in Poland. On July 10, 1942, Emeric obtained a copy of his French baptism certificate from the archives of the Archbishop of Paris. He was released from Drancy on February 22, 1943. The camp was staffed by French police until July 1, 1943, when the Germans took control of the camp. Emeric lived in hiding in Paris until the city was liberated by American troops on August 25, 1944. Emeric then worked in an American Red Cross nightclub where he met US Army Lieutenant Hedwiga Ferlin. She came to the club during the day to practice the piano. The couple married on October 20, 1945, and left for New York in August 1946.
title: Portrait of a young man in a cap created by a Hungarian Jewish musician in Drancy internment camp