UTW 62

Zlata Barshewsky of Bialystok, Poland, a great-grandmother of the artist

Art: 2014
Media: Mosaic – drawing combo. The drawing is sealed-in under plexiglass
Size: 63 inches H x 40 W. [152.4 cm. H x 101.6 W]

Zlata Barshewsky was an elderly resident of the Jewish Home for the Aged, Bialystok, Poland.

She was a great-grandmother of the artist. She was likely born around 1860. One of her sons, born Herschl, was the maternal grandfather of the artist. He left Poland around 1903, first living in London; then to the US around 1905. He died in New Jersey, 1968.

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The Mickey Mouse toy was given to the artist in the 1980's by a former girlfriend of the artist. The artist doesn't know if Mrs. Barshewsky ever saw a movie. It's possible there were movies shown in the Jewish Home for the Aged in Bialystok. In cities throughout Europe, prior to WWII, Mickey Mouse cartoons were widely seen in movie theaters. According to a first cousin of the artist (Segan met this cousin of his mother’s in Israel, in 1999, 2002 and 2005),  Zlata was very religious-devout and would not eat in the homes of two of her sons in Europe. One son had married a Lithuanian Jewish woman and they lived in Berlin where he sold clothing of their apartment-flat. He is depicted in the 3rd drawing [See Other Segan Holocaust art]

of The Shoah Trilogy: Zlata the Righteous of Bialystok and her son Liebl who lived in Berlin.
 

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The metal cups, inserted in the wood box, lower left; and the one at upper center left, were bought by the artist at a shop in Jaffa, Israel.

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The Hebrew writing at lower left says Zlata in Yiddish; the letters are read right to left.

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The mosaic image of a duck, left center, was derived from photos of Muscovy ducks Segan took in W. Palm Beach, Florida. The artists mother lived there for many years. See family background above.

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The imagery at upper left and upper right (the menorah) were inspired by photos of gravestones in the book of Polish Jewish gravestones, Time of Stones, photos by Monika Krajewska. (Pub. by Intepress, Warsaw, 1982).

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The 3 tiered candelabra mosaic section, upper center right, was inspired by a candelabra Segan bought at the Chest, Heart & Stroke charity thrift shop, Cupar, Scotland.

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The old wood molding at right was given to Segan by a Catholic artist friend, Cecilia Cooney. Other pieces of the molding, which likely date to the early 1900's, were used in two other mosaic-drawing combo artworks in the Under the Wings series.

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The artist knew his granddad as Harry. He would have been Herschl Barshewsky in Poland. He adopted the name Graff while in London, 1903-05 and when he and his wife, the artis’s

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The imagery at upper left and upper right (the menorah) were inspired by photos of gravestones in the book of Polish Jewish gravestones, Time of Stones, photos by Monika Krajewska. (Pub. by Intepress, Warsaw, 1982).

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The 3 tiered candelabra at upper center right was inspired by a candelabra Segan bought at the Chest, Heart & Stroke charity thrift shop, Cupar, Scotland.

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The old wood molding at right was given to Segan by a Catholic artist friend, Cecilia Cooney. Other pieces of the molding, which likely date to the early 1900's, were used in two other mosaic-drawing combo artworks in the Under the Wings series.

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A 66 sec. video overview of the Zlata Barshewsky artwork.

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A 3 min., 23 sec overview Pére Jacques, Zlata of Bialystok art by A.K. Segan.