About the Book

This illustrated version of the popular Passover song "Had gadya" was the wonderfully playful offspring of the avant-garde artist El Lissitzky (1890-1941). It dates to a little-known period early in his career when he immersed himself in the Jewish cultural renaissance that flourished in Russia from roughly 1912 to the early 1920s. Signed with his Hebrew given name, this volume-with its wraparound cover, colorful lithographic montages, and stylized use of Yiddish and Aramaic words-celebrates Lissitzky's interest in Jewish folk traditions while looking forward to the dynamic graphic and typographic designs for which he is best remembered.
This near-scale facsimile-including the rarely seen cover-allows readers to experience Lissitzky's Had gadya as originally envisioned. It is accompanied here by Nancy Perloff's discussion of the work's cultural and artistic contexts, Arnold J. Band's English translation of Lissitzky's Yiddish version of the song, sections on Lissitzky's iconography and vocabulary, and lyrics set to music.

Product Details

Media: Paperback Book, 42 pages

Language: Aramaic

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Edition: Unknown

ISBN-10: 089236744X

Publication Date: Mar. 31st, 2004

ISBN-13: 9780892367443

Dimensions: 9.76 x 11.18 x 0.22 inches

Shipping Weight: 0.65 lbs

• Categories: General Art Jewish Rituals and Jewish Practice