us-005578-irn74897-irn4384
type: RecordSet
archival history: The etching was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1991 by Ani Mander.
biographical history: Walter Spitzer was born on June 14, 1927, in the Czech-Polish border town of Cieszyn (Województwo Śląskie), Poland, to Grete Weiss and Samuel Spitzer. He had a brother, Harry. It was a pleasant, upper middle class existence and Walter’s artistic talent was noticed early. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland. In 1940, his brother was taken away by German soldiers. Shortly after, his father died from complications after surgery. Soon after, all the Jews of Cieszyn were banished from their homes. Walter, age 13, and his mother sought refuge in Strzemieszyce, near Sosnowiec and Bedzin in southwest Poland. Conditions were believed to be better there; the ghetto was open and the Jewish Council was extremely organized. Walter was able to support them by working as a photographer and as a welder at the Eisenwerke (Steel Factory). But in June 1943, the Jews were expelled from Strzemieszyce and transported to Blechhammer labor camp. Walter was separated from his mother and sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where he was tattooed with the number, 178489. In January 1945, Walter was forced on a death march to Gross-Rosen, from where he was taken to Buchenwald by train and assigned the number, 124465. In his autobiography, Spitzer relates a promise that he made to the German political prisoner in charge of his barracks. This man told Spitzer that he would keep him off the next transport lists, if he promised to tell with his pencils all that he saw in the camps. While at Buchenwald, Walter made portraits and drawings which he bartered for bread. He also did clandestine drawings of forced labor. Most of his camp drawings were lost when the camp was liquidated. The inmates were forced on a death march to Sylésie in February, then to Gera, a Buchenwald subcamp. While on the forced march to Gera, in April 1945, Spitzer was liberated by the United States Army. In May, he was transported to Austria, where he was taken in by the 3256 Signal Service Company of the United States Arme…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Monochrome black; edition 2/30. In the background are barracks and two figures carrying a figure on a stretcher. On the right side are four prisoners; one sits, two stand, and one lies naked on the ground, facing different directions. In the foreground, six prisoners huddle together, in different positions, and listen to the message of one naked prisoner, who is gesturing with one finger.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: Restrictions on use. Donor retains copyright for this collection.
date: 1943 June-1945 April
has beginning date: 1955-01-01
has end date: 1955-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: fra
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn4384
is or was included in: us-005578-irn74897
record resource extent: overall: Height: 12.800 inches (32.512 cm) | Width: 9.250 inches (23.495 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Intaglio etched print created in 1955 by Walter Spitzer based upon his experiences as an inmate in Blechhammer and Buchenwald concentration camps from 1943-1945. Following the German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, Walter fled with his family from Cieszyn (Województwo Śląskie). In 1940, his brother, Harry, was taken away by German soldiers and his father, Samuel, died after surgery. In June 1943, he and his mother, Gretta, were deported to Blechhammer labor camp where they were separated. Walter was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau, then Buchenwald, where the 17 year-old Spitzer began documenting camp life. He promised a fellow inmate to tell with his pencils all that he saw in the camps. Walter's family did not survive the war and he settled in France. He became a professional artist, creating an eloquent artistic record of the Shoah. Spitzer did the original drawings for this print set in 1945, following his liberation by US troops while on a death march. This print is part of a set of nine, number 2 of 30. Many of the drawings feature inmates referred to as Muselmann by the other prisoners, who avoided them. These are prisoners who are near death due to exhaustion, illness, starvation, or hopelessness. This print depicts a group of emaciated prisoners listening to another inmate speak, with barracks and a figure on a stretcher in the background.
title: Survive and Tell Etching by Walter Spitzer of a group of concentration camp inmates listening to a speaker