Sholem Aleichem’s tales use humor to belie the hardships of life in the shtetl, market village. His stories are specific to a time and place, but the themes are universal—assimilation, emigration, poverty and antisemitism. Lithuanian-Israeli artist, David Labkovski (1906-1991), who illustrated daily Jewish life prior to the Holocaust in his hometown of Vilna (current day Vilnius), was inspired by Sholem Aleichem’s writings, illustrating the characters in commemoration of the ‘world that was.’ Join us for an online exhibit with guide Leora Raikin as we explore the connection between these two great artists and the stories that still resonant for us today.

Leora Raikin: South African-born, Los Angeles based, Leora Raikin is an international speaker captivating audiences throughout the world. As founder of the David Labkovski Project, educator, artist and author she co-developed a project based multi disciplinary educational program to teach students about Jewish life in Eastern Europe; before, during and after the Holocaust through the art of Lithuanian-Israeli artist David Labkovski (1906-1991) that has been successfully scaled and implemented in middle schools, high schools and colleges in the United States, Lithuania and Mexico. Leora was born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa and earned a Bachelor of Business Science undergraduate degree from University of Cape Town and a Masters in Research from UCT, South Africa.

David Labkovski: The Lithuanian- Israeli artist David Labkovski (1906-1991), died nearly three decades ago, leaving behind a body of over 400 pieces of narrative art that depicted Jewish life in Vilna, Lithuania. Labkovski grew up in Vilna, then known as the Jerusalem of the North, participated in his first international art exhibition at sixteen, and then traveled to Moscow. There he worked at the State Jewish Theater, later studying at the Art Academy in Leningrad. He was drafted into the Red Army and then expelled and sent to the Lubyanka prison in Moscow with the onset of the Second World War. Sentenced to prison in the gulags of Siberia, Labkovski survived due to his artistic skills, earning extra portions of food as the prison tattoo and sketch artist. Upon his return to Vilna after the war, Labkovski found the community and city that he loved completely destroyed. The Nazis and their collaborators had murdered 95% of Vilna’s Jewish community. Labkovski began painting not only the city ruins, but the city of his memory and the stories of the few survivors he encountered. He and his wife Rivka lived in Lithuania for a decade after the war before emigrating to Israel. In 1959, his first Israeli exhibit opened to critical acclaim but limited popularity. Audiences at the time wanted to move forward and not look back. This response convinced Labkovski not to sell his paintings. This decision to keep his paintings together ultimately gave rise to the David Labkovski Project (DLP). In 2016, Mr. Douglas Bernard Schaper, a U.S. citizen, donated three paintings by David Labkovski to the Art Collection of the Vilna Gaon State Jewish Museum. The David Labkovski Project advances knowledge of the Holocaust and Jewish History through Labkovski’s art utilizing his history, paintings and sketches.

There is no fee, but please RSVP for planning purposes. This event is held virtually on Zoom. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the event. For more information, contact Program Director Ilene Tatro at itatro@cbisd.org.

CSP Partners: Beth Israel (San Diego, CA), Congregation Beth Shalom (Seattle, WA), Congregation B’nai Tzedek (Fountain Valley, CA), Congregation B’nai Israel (Tustin, CA), Jewish Collaborative of Orange County, CA, Temple Bat Yahm (Newport Beach, CA), Temple Beth El of South Orange County (Aliso Viejo, CA), Temple Beth Emet (Anaheim, CA), Temple Beth Ohr (La Mirada, CA), Temple Beth Tikvah (Fullerton, CA), Temple Beth Shalom (Needham, MA), Temple Beth Sholom (Santa Ana, CA), Temple Emanuel (Newton, MA), Town & Village Synagogue (NYC, NY), University Synagogue (Irvine, CA), Valley Beth Shalom (Encino, CA) & Walnut Street Synagogue (Chelsea, MA)