Literature and Art in Concentration Camps and Ghettos, 1942-1945
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Brief Description:

This record group contains narratives in the form of poetry, prose, illustrated diaries, and artworks created in the Nazi incarceration centers. Some writings were meant for public consumption, while the others were created clandestinely and remained hidden. Some of these narratives saw publication in the postwar period, while others never have been published.

Materials in this record group include unpublished narratives and prose, artifacts, artworks. Materials are digitized.

Held at:
Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust
100 S. The Grove Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Phone: 323-651-3704
Fax: 323-843-9518
Email: archive [at] lamoth.org
Record Series Number: RG-04/RG-04
Created by: Müller, Moritz (1887-1944), Bruno Heilig (1940), Gerard, Betti (1934-), Willy Rosen, prisoner of Nazi German ghettos and concentration camps
Volume: 0.0
Arrangement:

The arrangement scheme for the record group was imposed during processing in the absence of an original order. Materials are arranged by creator, then by identifier, as assigned by the processor.

Record group is comprised of the following collections: 1. Willy Rosen papers; 2. Mortiz Mueller collection; Works of Peter Kien and Children Book of Inscriptions by Betti Gerard (Kubaschka)

Biographical Note for Müller, Moritz (1887-1944) :

Moritz Müller was born on January 11, 1887, the youngest of four children. Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Prague, where Müller grew up. He started taking private classes in drawing during his childhood and, having shown great talent, Müller later went on to the Prague Academy of Fine Arts. While he did not paint for a living, he was constantly in contact with the art world. In Prague, Müller opened a private school for drawing and enrolled in the Mánes Artists Association. After World War I, he established an auction hall for arts in one of Prague’s liveliest cultural and social centers.

Müller is recorded as being popular and well-liked among both Czech and German art collectors, as well as among the artists themselves. After Nazi occupation, his auction hall was robbed and closed, and Müller began to work for the Prague Jewish Community, appraising the art objects from the confiscated Jewish properties.

On July 8, 1943, Müller was deported as "passenger" 424 on Transport Dh to Theresienstadt, where he spent the last fourteen months of his life. Despite his background as a professional artist, he was not assigned in the ghetto art workshops or in the technical department, as with many of the other artists. Rather, he worked as an orderly in the urological ward of Dr. Kurt Weiner in the engineer barracks.

While at Theresienstadt, Müller produced, at minimum, five hundred works of art, many of which were portraits of the ill, crippled, and dying--some beauteous, some witty, some shocking. During his first few months at Theresienstadt, Müller drew at least one picture a day, often more. As his internment continued, however, he drew less, each picture taking more time. Every picture has been dated by Müller, the last of which was was dated August 16, 1944.

On October 1, 1944, as "passenger" 535 on Transport Em, Müller was deported to Auschwitz, where he was believed to be gassed to death on October 3, 1944, which is the day the transport arrived.

Subject Index
Art in camps and ghettos
literary works narrated in Nazi German concentration camps
Languages of Materials
Dutch;Flemish [dut]
German [ger]
PreferredCitation: RG-04, Literature and Art in Camps and Ghettos. Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust Archive.