us-005578-irn58998
type: RecordSet
archival history: The watercolor drawing was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013.
biographical history: Magdalena (Magda) Fischer was born on July 20, 1914, in Kolozsvar, Hungary (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania), to a Jewish couple, Rudolf and Gisella Widder Fischer. Magda had two brothers: Bela, born in 1920, and Stefan, born on December 18, 1922. Her father Rudolf was born in 1896 in Betlen, Transylvania (Beclean, Romania). He was a furniture manufacturer. Magda’s mother Gisella was born in 1892 in Miskolc, Hungary. In 1920, Kolozsvar and the surrounding region of Transylvania became part of Romania as a result of the treaty that formally ended World War I (1914-1918). Magda moved to Budapest, Hungary, to attend art school. In 1938, Magda married Ladislao Frank in Budapest. Hungary was governed by a fascist regime, allied with Nazi Germany, with anti-Semitic laws modeled on the Nuremberg Laws. In 1940, Magda’s hometown Kolozsvar, along with the rest of northern Transylvania, was returned to Hungary. In March 1944, Germany invaded Hungary and severely restricted Jewish life and began systematic deportations. In June, Magda was confined in a Judenhaus, a building designated for Jews and marked with a yellow Star of David. In November, Magda was forced into the closed ghetto. On January 18, 1945, Magda, in the Pest section, was liberated by Soviet forces. The Soviets liberated the rest of the city on February 13. The war ended when Germany surrendered on May 7. Magda continued her education in Budapest at the Hungarian Academy of Fine Arts from 1945 to 1946 and the College of Arts from 1947 to 1948. In 1948, Magda was divorced because Ladislao forced her to choose between him and her art. Magda left Budapest and spent five months in Vienna, Austria, and one week in Linz displaced persons camp. She went to Zurich, then to Paris. Magda studied at the Academie Julian in 1949. On January 30, 1950, Magda sailed from Marseille, France, to Argentina on the SS Campana. She went to Buenos Aires to join her brother Stefan, her only surviving relative. Stefan was arrested in Kolozsvar …
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Charcoal sketch in a nearly abstract style with watercolor wash on paper depicting 6 Orthodox Jewish men outlined in thick black strokes with indistinct facial features, standing in a staggered row. They are bearded and wear long coats and wide brimmed hats or skullcaps, called kippahs. The first man carries a long scroll, likely a Torah scroll, upon his right shoulder. The other men carry sacks in their right hands and 2 men wear yellow Star of David patches. A partial building is sketched in the back left corner. The work is washed with blue, pink, purple, green, gray, and yellow watercolor. It is signed and inscribed with a title. front, upper right corner, charcoal : POZSONY [Hungarian name for Bratislava]
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: hun
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn58998
record resource extent: overall: Height: 7.750 inches (19.685 cm) | Width: 10.500 inches (26.67 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Watercolor sketch called Pozsony, Hungarian for Bratislava, Slovakia, of 6 Orthodox Jewish males created by Magda Frank, a professional sculpture, at an unknown date. Magda, 30, a native of Kolozsvar, Hungary (now Cluj-Napoca, Romania) was in Budapest attending art school when it was occupied by Nazi Germany in March 1944. Magda was relocated to a yellow star building and, in November, confined to the Jewish ghetto. In early 1945, Budapest was liberated by Soviet forces. In 1950, Magda emigrated to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to join her only surviving relative, a brother Stefan.
title: Charcoal and watercolor sketch of six Orthodox Jewish males