Elisabeth Mann, wartime art, 1944 -- 1949, 1944-1955 | Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust

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Collection Overview

Title: Elisabeth Mann, wartime art, 1944 -- 1949, 1944-1955

Predominant Dates:1945 -- 1951

ID: RG-22/RG-22

Primary Creator: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Extent: 8.0 Items

Subjects: Auschwitz-Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp), Bergen-Belsen (Germany: Concentration Camp), Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), Concentration camps, German, Elisabeth Mann, A small boat with oars, Elisabeth Mann, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp, Elisabeth Mann, A woman in Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper, Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps, Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor, Elisabeth Mann, Holocaust experience through pictorial realization, 1945 -- 1945, Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a child, sketch, pencil on paper, Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a woman, sketch, pencil on paper, Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections, Elisabeth Mann, Prisoners at Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper, Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949, Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience, Elisabeth Mann, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp, Elisabeth Mann. Portrait of a Women, 1949, Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar, Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor, Existential perception of the Holocaust, Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor camps, Germany (1941 -- 1945), Holocaust-related art, Hungarian experience in the Holocaust, Hungary (1939--1945), Pictorial depiction of day-to-day life in German concentration camps, Sweden (1945 -- present)

Languages: German, Swedish

Abstract

Elisabeth Mann, collection of postwar portrayal sketches created in Sweden, in 1949.

Elisabeth Mann depicts scenes rendered by her reflective memory recorded in Auschwitz concentration camp and Braunschweig concentration camps.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

Collection of sketches, pencil on paper, by Elisabeth Mann, the former prisoner and survivor of several German concentration camps. She depicts fellow prisoners, older people and children, at a camp.

Although in sketches, her reflections are not schematic and generic. They emanate the essence of day-to-day existential situation in incarceration.

There are seven reflective sketches (pencil on paper) and portrait in oil (oil on paper)

ELISABETH MANN (ERSZEBET MOHR): FLICKERING REFLECTIONS OF ART, 1945

We present here six sketches of Elisabeth Mann, created in Sweden in 1945.

Elisabeth Mann a former prisoner of German concentration camps and survivor of the Shoah settled in Sweden after the war. Although free and safe, her mind remained overwhelmed with angst and distressing memories of wartime. It was time when loss of loved ones and unexpected witnessing of killings as ordinary process became a mundane flow of life under death.

In postwar Sweden she remained entangled with existential realities of the war. She portrayed the images of the past, so intrinsic to her despondent inner world. Perhaps it was her redemption for the regaining the meaning of her own life.

Elisabeth Mann was born Erszebet Mohr in Hungary in 1925. For the Mohr Family’ a relative stability and predictability of prewar life ultimately expired in March -- April 1944. Followed by extreme geo-political changes in Europe in general and in Hungary in particular, the new pro-Nazi Hungarian government commenced a full scale ghettoization and deportation of the Jews from Hungary and Hungarian-controlled territories. Between 400,000 and 500,000 Jews were ghettoized and deported in the course of April – June 1944. The majority of collectively referred Hungarian Jewry ended up in Auschwitz – Birkenau.

Since then Elisabeth Mann saw the life flickering before her eyes as a series of uncontrolled borderline situations: deportation to Auschwitz, then transfer to Bergen Belsen Concentration camp, then again transfer to Braunschweig concentration camp for women. She survived them all.

Owing to the efforts of International Red Cross she and a group of other female prisoners of the Braunschweig camp were released to Denmark. It was in the beginning of May 1945. In a psychological sense, it was a new status, marked by deliberation from her being an object of persecutions to her becoming a subject of her own.

In the autumn of 1945, she was admitted as a refugee to Sweden. She lived in small, rural communities. Those were Oster Korsebrga, Sjoberga. Later, Elisabeth found employment at a local school. Formally free, she remained a captive of her daunting memories. Elisabeth Mann found self- realization in teaching. It was partially a reckoning. She coped with her past by sketching scenes reflecting her wartime experience.

In 1945 – 1949, she created a series of sketches related to mundane life in Auschwitz and Braunschweig concentration camps. She also depicted a Swedish landscapes.

Elisabeth Mann lived in Sweden until 1955 and then she and her husband immigrated to the United States.

American mode of life has not erased her wearisome memories. Elisabeth is not seeking disentangling from her deeply disturbing Past. This selection of her sketches does attest to the continuity of the Past and its inerasable marks.

Collection Historical Note

Elisabeth Mann is a former prisoner of German concentration camps and survivor of the Holocaust. After liberation she settled in Sweden. Her mind remained occupied with anxious thoughts and memories holding her from disentangling of the horrifying reality of incarceration. Portraying the images of her intrinsic past perhaps enabling Elisabeth Mann with a meaning of life.

ELISABETH MANN (ERSZEBET MOHR): FLICKERING REFLECTIONS OF ART, 1945

We present here six sketches of Elisabeth Mann, created in Sweden in 1945.

In 1945 – 1949, she created a series of sketches related to mundane life in Auschwitz and Braunschweig concentration camps. She also depicted a Swedish landscapes.

Elisabeth Mann lived in Sweden until 1955 and then she and her husband immigrated to the United States.

Elisabeth Mann, sketches,

RG-22.01, Portrait of a woman, 1945

RG-22.02, Portrait of a child, 1945

RG-22.03, Prisoners at Auschwitz, ca 1945

RG-22.04, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, ca 1944

RG-22.05, A small boat with oars, a fragment, 1945

RG-22.06, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp, 1945

RG-22.07, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp, 1945RG-22.08, Germany, a family on the way, 1944

RG-22.08, Germany, a family on the way, 1944

RG-22.09, Woman from Auschwitz. 1945

Biographical Note

Elizabeth Mann was born in Hungary in 1925. She grew up in a house filled with music; her father played the violin, her mother sang, and each of the four children played an instrument. In 1941, however, her older brother was drafted into the army and sent to France, beginning the separation of her family. A few years later, her sister was taken by SS officers and disappeared.

In April 1944, Elisabeth and her family were forced to move into the ghetto. Not long after, the family was deported. They took only what they could carry to the railroad station and were loaded into cattle cars. After a hellish five day journey, they arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau. The family tried to stay together, but the men were ordered into one line and the women and children were ordered into another. Elisabeth’s younger brother, Laci, had just turned 13 and by Jewish law was now a man. He asked Elisabeth which line he ought to join. Because he was very ill, Elisabeth told him to stay with their mother, not knowing that this decision would send him directly to the gas chamber with their parents.

Elisabeth got strength and hope through memories of home and her nine “camp sisters,” who would literally support each other during roll calls. She also managed to meet briefly with her sister who had disappeared while in Auschwitz. In October 1944, she was sent to Bergen-Belsen before being sent on a death march. She was liberated in Denmark on May 2, 1945.

She spent several years in Sweden, where she met her husband, before immigrating to the US in 1955. They are the proud parents of two daughters and a son. In time, Elisabeth learned that the rest of her family had died, but she never lost touch with her camp sisters. They saved her life and became her family. Today she encourages everyone to believe in love and hope, saying, “Human beings cannot give up hope. As long as you have your life, and hope, you can do anything.”

Subject/Index Terms

Auschwitz-Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp)
Bergen-Belsen (Germany: Concentration Camp)
Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp)
Concentration camps, German
Elisabeth Mann, A small boat with oars
Elisabeth Mann, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp
Elisabeth Mann, A woman in Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper
Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps
Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau
Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor
Elisabeth Mann, Holocaust experience through pictorial realization, 1945 -- 1945
Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a child, sketch, pencil on paper
Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a woman, sketch, pencil on paper
Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections
Elisabeth Mann, Prisoners at Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper
Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949
Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience
Elisabeth Mann, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp
Elisabeth Mann. Portrait of a Women, 1949
Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar
Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor
Existential perception of the Holocaust
Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann
Forced labor camps
Germany (1941 -- 1945)
Holocaust-related art
Hungarian experience in the Holocaust
Hungary (1939--1945)
Pictorial depiction of day-to-day life in German concentration camps
Sweden (1945 -- present)

Box and Folder Listing

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 1: RG-22.01, Portrait of a woman, 1945

Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), portrait of a Hungarian-Jewish woman at a concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a woman, sketch, pencil on paper; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Concentration camps, German; Existential perception of the Holocaust; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Hungarian experience in the Holocaust; Sweden (1945 -- present); Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 3: RG-22.03, Prisoners at Auschwitz, ca 1945

Elisabeth Mann, Prisoners at Auschwitz, ca 1945

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience; Existential perception of the Holocaust; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Concentration camps, German; Pictorial depiction of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Auschwitz-Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp); Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Sweden (1945 -- present); Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 4: RG-22.04, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, ca 1944

Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, ca 1944

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience; Existential perception of the Holocaust; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Concentration camps, German; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, pictorial depiction; forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Pictorial depiction of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction; Forced labor in concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 5: RG-22.05, A small boat with oars, a fragment, 1945

Elisabeth Mann, A small boat with oars, a fragment, 1945, pencil on paper

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 6: RG-22.06, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp, 1945

Elisabeth Mann, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp, 1945, penci on paper

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Concentration camps, German; Existential perception of the Holocaust; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration camp), female prisoners, agricultural works pictorial depiction; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp); Braunschweig (German: concentration camp), female prisoners; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 2: RG-22.02, Portrait of a child, 1945

Elisabeth Mann, Portrait of a child, 1945 -- 1949

Subject/Index Terms:: Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience; Children in the Holocaust, postwar portrayal; Children in the Holocaust, postwar portrayal, Elisabeth Mann; Existential perception of the Holocaust; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Sweden (1945 -- present); Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 7: RG-22.07, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp, 1945

Pencil on paper sketch of a woman at work in Braunschweig concentration camp, near Wolfsburg.

Artist: Elisabeth Mann, survivor of German concentration camps.

Subject/Index Terms:: Braunschweig (German: concentration camp), female prisoners; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp); Braunschweig (Germany: concentration camp), female prisoners, agricultural works, Elisabeth Mann; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Children in the Holocaust, postwar portrayal, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Elisabeth Mann, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps; Concentration camps, German; Holocaust-related art; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 8: RG-22.08, Germany, a family on the way, 1944

This is a pencil on paper sketch by artist and Holocaust survivor, Elisabeth Mann. The sketch depicts a refugee family on the move in Germany.

Subject/Index Terms:: Braunschweig (German: concentration camp), female prisoners; Braunschweig (Germany: concentration camp), female prisoners, agricultural works, Elisabeth Mann; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration camp), female prisoners, agricultural works pictorial depiction; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp; Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust; Concentration camps, German; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps; Holocaust-related art; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, Women at agricultural work, Braunschweig concentration camp

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 9: RG-22.09, Woman from Auschwitz, 1945

This is a pencil on paper sketch by artist and Holocaust survivor, Elisabeth Mann. This sketch depicts a portrait of a women imprisoned in Auschwitz concentration camp.

Subject/Index Terms:: Auschwitz (Concentration camp); Elisabeth Mann, Prisoners at Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper; Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp), female prisoners pictorial depiction Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, A woman in Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper; Elisabeth Mann, A woman at work, Braunschweig concentration camp; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Elisabeth Mann, Holocaust experience through pictorial realization, 1945 -- 1945; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Holocaust-related art; Concentration camps, German; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 10: RG-22.10, Elisabeth Mann, Portrait of a Woman, 1949

This is an oil on canvas painting, entitled "Portrait of a Woman", painted by Elisabeth Mann, artist and survivor of German concentration camps.

Subject/Index Terms:: Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp), female prisoners pictorial depiction Elisabeth Mann; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Braunschweig (Germany: concentration camp), female prisoners, agricultural works, Elisabeth Mann; Braunschweig (Germany: Concentration Camp), female prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Children in the Holocaust, postwar portrayal, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, art sketches, postwar; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Elisabeth Mann, Holocaust experience through pictorial realization, 1945 -- 1945; Elisabeth Mann, portrait of a woman, sketch, pencil on paper; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949; Elisabeth Mann, wartime and postwar experience; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Existential perception of the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps; Holocaust-related art; Concentration camps, German

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)

Document/Artifact of Item-Level 11: RG-22.11, Portrait of a woman, 1949. Oil on plywood

This is an oil on plywood artwork entitled, "Portrait of a Woman", made by Elisabeth Mann, artist and survivor of German concentration camps.

Subject/Index Terms:: Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration Camp), female prisoners pictorial depiction Elisabeth Mann; Auschwitz Birkenau (Poland: Concentration camp), prisoners, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Elisabeth Mann, Forced labor at Auschwitz Birkenau; Elisabeth Mann, Prisoners at Auschwitz, sketch, pencil on paper; Elisabeth Mann, existential perception of day-to-day life in German concentration camps; Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Elisabeth Mann, Holocaust experience through pictorial realization, 1945 -- 1945; Elisabeth Mann, postwar pictorial reflections; Elisabeth Mann, sketches portraying prisoners of German concentration camps, 1945 -- 1949; Prisoners of German concentration camps, pictorial depiction, Elisabeth Mann; Postwar personal reflections on the Holocaust, Elisabeth Mann; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), former prisoner of German concentration camps, survivor; Erszebet Mohr (Elisabeth Mann), existential depiction, postwar; Elisabeth Mann. Portrait of a Women, 1949; Holocaust-related art; Concentration camps, German; Female prisoners of the German concentration camps

Creators:: Elisabeth Mann, former prisoner of German concentration camps (1940s -- 1950s)