Si Lewen’s Parade

$40.00

SKU: 9781419721618
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5 + $30.00

Description

This deeply moving version of The Parade allows the reader to explore the art as Si Lewen intended it to be seen, in sequence. As the work unfolds, the reader is taken on an unforgettable journey through the essential nature of all wars—past, present, and future.

Remastered from the original art, The Parade was and remains a groundbreaking work, a cry from the heart about mankind’s perpetual lust for war and its ensuing horrors by a Polish Jewish painter born right after World War I who experienced those horrors as one of the first American soldiers to enter the gates of Buchenwald in 1945.

This edition was newly discovered, remastered, and presented by Art Spiegelman, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Maus. In addition to Lewen's spectacular art, the book features An Artist’s Odyssey, a monograph edited, designed, and with an extensive biographical and critical essay by Spiegelman, who takes the reader on a guided tour of Si Lewen’s singular life and work, profusely illustrated with art from Lewen's long and prolific career.

Lewen turned away from his success as a postwar New York painter to immerse himself in his art rather than in the “artworld”—exploring his early childhood vision of wanting to see paintings hung close together, “so they could talk to one another,” a vision well ahead of its time that is appropriately presented in the unique format of this book.

The Parade is a celebration of art and the story of recurring war as Si Lewen experienced it over 90 years, watching the joyful parades that marked the end of World War I lead into the death marches of World War II and the Korean War.

The Parade is a powerfully moving free-jazz dirge of a book that depicts mankind’s recurring war fever. It remains sadly urgent and relevant today.” —Art Spiegelman, from his introduction

As the New York Times noted in an April 2024 column marking the opening of an exhibition of these paintings, "After 70 Years, Si Lewen’s Wrenching ‘Parade’ Marches On." The Times praised "the series of untitled antiwar works on artist’s board that forms the pulsing heart of a new exhibition curated by the cartoonist Art Spiegelman."

“A compelling testament to Lewen’s gifts for stirring our souls with the silent grace of painted panel after panel after panel. As narrative, it is music by which to mourn Man’s fate.” —The Washington Post

“An eloquent and vigorous protest against war’s horror and futility.” —New York Times, from an exhibition review of The Parade, 1953

“Nothing can equal the psychological effect of real art. . . . Our time needs you and your work!” —Albert Einstein, from a letter to Si Lewen, 1951

Si Lewen was born in Lublin, Poland, on November 8, 1918. During World War II he served in the US Army as one of the Ritchie Boys (German-speaking Special Ops) from the invasion of Normandy to the liberation of Buchenwald. He resumed his career as a painter after the war. Lewen lives in Gwynedd, Pennsylvania. Si Lewen passed away at the Foulkways retirement home in Gwynedd, Pennsylvania, on July 25, 2016. A few days before his death, Art Spiegelman presented him with a finished copy of Si Lewen’s Parade: An Artist’s Odyssey. Lewen’s daughter Nina Kardon said, “Seeing the book brought him not only happiness, but a sense of closure to his life.” The Whitney Museum of American Art acquired several pieces of his art from Si Lewen's Parade in 2017. Art Spiegelman is an American comics writer, artist, and editor best known for his Pulitzer Prize–winning graphic novel memoir, Maus.
"An eloquent and vigorous protest against war’s horror and futility."—The New York Times, from an exhibition review of The Parade, 1953"Nothing can equal the psychological effect of real art . . .Our time needs you and your work!"—Albert Einstein, from a letter to Si Lewen, 1951"The Parade is a powerfully moving free-jazz dirge of a book that depicts mankind’s recurring war fever. It remains sadly urgent and relevant today."—Art Spiegelman, from his introduction“A compelling testament to Lewen’s gifts for stirring our souls with the silent grace of painted panel after panel after panel. As narrative, it is music by which to mourn Man’s fate.” —The Washington Post“There are many masterworks dealing with conflict and its evils, from Goya’s “Disasters of War” to Picasso’s “Guernica” to Jacob Lawrence’s “War Series.” Si Lewen’s “Parade” must be counted among them.”—Wall Street Journal

Additional information

Dimensions 1.4 × 8.1 × 11.2 in
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Subjects

Artistic exploration, Graphic storytelling, Artistic legacy, Historical context, Cultural memory, Human resilience, War and peace, Graphic symbolism, Narrative art, Visual poetry, Universal themes, Social commentary, Metaphorical language, War-torn landscapes, Memory and trauma, War atrocities, Emotionally charged, Powerful visuals, Surreal illustrations, Symbolic imagery, Illustrated journey, Anti-war message, Human suffering, Artistic expression, Historical allegory, Human spirit, antiwar, War and loss, Silent witness, Artistic interpretation, War's aftermath, Graphic expression, Holocaust history, War and survival, Visual metaphors, Artistic symbolism, War as tragedy, Silent storytelling, Narrative silence, Holocaust art, War and memory, Visual impact, War and humanity, Graphic allegory, Silent communication, Artistic vision, War is futile, Emotional depth, Emblematic illustrations, holocaust remembrance, history, wordless graphic novel, HIS027020, HIS027090, graphic memoir, parades, personal reflection, artistic journey, world war i, WWI, concentration camp, Si Lewen, graphic novels, wars, ART033000, HIS027100, art book, holocaust, world war ii, WW2, WWII, society, HIS043000, Epic storytelling, Holocaust survivor, Visual narrative, Free-jazz dirge, Emotional impact, Painted panels, Horror and futility of war, Mankind's war fever, Protest against war, War experiences, Sequential images, Lost classic, ww1, wordless, violence in society, the great war, korean war, futility, death marches, Accordion-fold format, conflicts, Art Spiegelman, 20th-century war, 20th century