The Holocaust Collection

A valuable piece of history

Gideon's life-long focus with this very special collection is that he is determined to make sure the pain and agony that occurred during the Holocaust will never be forgotten and never be repeated.   Though his works portray the very depth and soul of his unforgettable war images from World War II, there is the message of hope instilled in his works.  Each step Gideon takes whether in agony or ecstasy is never empty, but filled with a force of unstoppable spirit that will proclaim him conqueror of every new horizon.  His journey indeed, is an ascending one,  may his works speak for both himself and history.  One day, of all days, these works shall portray what is righteous versus what is wrong for generations to come.  Never shall this dreadful event be forgotten.  

This Holocaust art collection is a remarkable record of the pain and suffering of World War II, created from the personal experiences and memories of artist Gideon. This collection of powerful paintings and sculptures began in 1944 as Gideon started sketching what he saw and experienced all over Europe. When he returned home in 1946 he began painting and sculpturing these memories from his many sketches and memories of POWs, holocaust victims, soldiers and battered people of World War II. Gideon has created magnificent works of art from these memories, all serving as a priceless piece of history. These are some of Gideon's most valued possessions, for they are his savored memories of the most terrible war in history and stand to hold the memories of the millions who suffered.  This terrible event, burned in his soul, has continued till this day with his adding to the portrayal of it in his art.  

Most of the paintings in this collection are large, usually up to 6' or 7'.  The sculptures range in size from small 3' and 4' sculptures up to large 6' life-size works.  In his late-seventies, Gideon is willing to part with this valuable piece of history and his life in order for future generations to view such great works in a remembrance of what happened. This collection needs to be have a museum built around it and displayed internationally. This memory MUST be preserved.   Millions of people around the world can and have benefited from experiencing this collection.  

Please join us in this, remembrance of the Holocaust.

Title:

Abraham's Bosom

Approximate Size: (W x H)

52" x  60"

Description:

Gideon has never been able to erase the faces he encountered as he looked upon the effects of the atrocities that had been committed on humankind. Even with all that happened to these people, Gideon was inspired by the faith in God they kept to guide them through these difficult times.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Agony

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

Life-size 

Description:

After the war and liberation of the camps Gideon remained with the occupation in Europe, helping to relocate displaced persons with their families. Gideon created this sculpture to show the haunting agony of the millions of displaced persons across the European continent, feeling lost and not knowing where to go.

This final episode to a war filled with anguish and inhumanity, presented a climax that would be a never-ending impression and influence on Gideon's expression as an Artist.

Sculpture w/Pedestal

Title:

Breaking the Bondage

Approximate Size: (W x H)

52" x  64"

Description:

 Like the hand of God coming down from the heavens, the camps were liberated and the millions in bondage were set free.  As Gideon went across Europe, the ever lasting impression of the camps lead Gideon to create this work.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

The Prison Camps

Approximate Size: (H x W)

36" x 48"

Description:

This work shows the horrible forces that entrap the victims into an almost certain death. The barbed wire fences and the fear of death slowly destroy the minds and souls of the victims. But resiliently, they continue to reach up for help, a sign of never ending hope and strength to survive.

Oil/Canvas 

Title:

Chained

Approximate Size: (W x H)

48" x 60"

Description:

 In this piece Gideon captures the horror of the Holocaust. Gideon has come to understand this atrocity first hand. His experiences lead him to create this suffering, this torture of man-kind's soul. 

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Horror in their Eyes

Approximate Size: (W x H)

24" x 26"

Description:

As you look at the faces in Gideon's Holocaust paintings, you may notice there is usually one of a child. Gideon relates that everywhere he went there were little children looking up at you with begging eyes. Of course they were hungry, but Gideon felt the hunger went deeper than a bodily need for food. He includes them not only as an unrelenting memory, but as a symbol of hope for the generations to come.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

The Holocaust

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

Life-size

Description:

Gideon's vision of the suffering and agony of the Holocaust is represented in this life-size sculpture. Sculpted with steel armature and his own composition, this work weighs nearly 2500 pounds. 

Sculpture

Title:

Exodus

Approximate Size: (H x W)

54" x 72"

Description:

Gideon painted this in 1946 after his return from WWII. He created this from a series of sketches he did while he was on the frontlines. It is probably the first major work of art ever done in the world depicting the suffering of the Holocaust. It has been hanging in this same spot since 1952.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Reaching from the Fire

Approximate Size: (W x H)

32" x 60"

Description:

A modern piece, this powerful work shows the desperate victims reaching from the ovens in Hitler's camps. 

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Bondage

Approximate Size: (H x W)

54" x  75"

Description:

 As death approaches, the spirit of men broke free from the bondage, seeking revenge on those that murdered. In this piece, Gideon places the Nazi in bondage. The Nazi's for once feel the suffering they produced.

A Nazi is choked in the reaching hair of a little girl symbolically creating an eternal bond between the criminal and the victim.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

With Spirit

Approximate Size: (W x H)

44" x 60"

Description:

With all that happened to these people, Gideon was always inspired by the faith in God they kept to guide them through these difficult times.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

The Oven

Approximate Size: (W x H)

48" x 72"

Description:

A haunting shadow of an oven is an ever present reminder of the danger at hand. Shattered souls hover together for comfort and behind is the spiritual figure of faith and hope.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

The Mask of Horror

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

Life-size

Description:

 Always trying to hide fear from the children, this pieces captures the horror Holocaust victims felt while trying to disguise the fear from their children.

Sculpture

Title:

Behind the Wire

Approximate Size: (H x W)

36" x 48"

Description:

This abstract work shows the horrible forces that entrap the victims into an almost certain death. The barbed wire fences and the fear of death slowly destroy the minds and souls of the victims.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

The Ghettos

Approximate Size: (W x H)

42" x 60"

Description:

The old and young stand side-by-side in this piece. All thrown together into a tiny space where once few lived thousands now struggle to survive. As they are imprisoned in these Ghettos, they peer through the wire hoping to catch a glimpse of freedom.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

 Betrayal

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 Life-size

 Description:

Gideon sculpted this piece to show how the victims of the Holocaust were betrayed by their fellow man. Side-by-side they had lived and worked together for hundreds of years and now they become victims of betrayal and deceit. 

Sculpture w/Pedestal

Title:

Ashes

Approximate Size: (W x H)

 48" x 60"

Description:

In agony, this piece shows the horror of the Nazi death camps at their worst. As the living victims are forced to endlessly labor, they live and breathe through the torture of seeing their families and friends burned to death in Hitler's ovens as their ashes fill the skies. The vibrant colors of this piece suggest the intense heat of the inferno that was Auschwitz.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Entrapment

Approximate Size: (H x W)

36" x 48"

Description:

This abstract work shows the horrible forces that entrap the souls of man into an almost certain death. The barbed wire fences and the fear of death slowly destroy the souls and minds of the victims.

Oil/Wood

Title:

Suffering

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

2" x 8" x 14"

Description:

Gideon recently created this piece from a piece of old, split wood.  It's ragged edges entrap the reaching souls of its victims. Symbolic of the Nazi death camps, this piece portrays the suffering of the holocaust victim.

Oil/Wood

Title:

Last Reach

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 14" x 12" x 14"

Description:

With his last breath, this sculpture of a fallen victim reaches up. These people, despite their agony never lost hope in their fellow man or God.

Sculpture

Title:

The Grave

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

Life-size 

Description:

Despite all that happened, Gideon was always amazed at how even through the last moment, the victims reached up for help. 

Sculpture

Title:

The Death Camps

Approximate Size: (W x H)

52" x 53"

Description:

 The ruthless murdering of family and friends left the victims looking on in horror. It is inconceivable to most how another man can inflict such pain, but yet they do.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Remembrance: The Holocaust Hand

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 12" x 12" x 28"

Description:

Gideon placed this sculpture of a reaching hand on a base of concrete and wrapped  it with old barbed wire, symbolizing the camps of imprisonment. He has captured in this piece both the horror of the camps and the determination of man to reach forward and break free from behind the wire. 

Gideon's hopes are to one day make a large monument from this sculpture. This modern-day wonder would serve as an International symbol against hatred.

Sculpture w/Pedestal

Title:

Mourning

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 34" x 18" x 37"

 Description:

This master work captures the horror and the fright the victims underwent during the Holocaust. Always in fear, always uncertain,  they endured great pain.

Sculpture

Title:

Faces

Approximate Size: (W x H)

43" x 46"

 Description:

Everywhere Gideon looked, he saw faces. Countless faces scattered across a continent, all uncertain of their futures. The only thing these faces knew is they had to get home, where ever home was. Gideon passed thousands of nameless faces, trying to help each and everyone of them. Today, Gideon always wonders what happened to the lives behind these faces.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Holocaust Hands

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

8" x 10" x 12"

 Description:

Constantly haunting his mind, Gideon has forged his memories of the hands of people reaching for help, for life. Everywhere in war-ravaged Europe he turned, he saw the empty hands of countless people reaching.

Pair of Sculptures

Title:

Reaching

Approximate Size: (W x H)

36" x 48"

 Description:

Gideon cannot get the images of people reaching for help, out of his mind. Every day that passes, the urge to help reaches out.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Lost

Approximate Size: (W x H)

48" x 60"

 Description:

The face of a woman peers through the crowd.  Her face filled with sorrow and confusion. In this work Gideon uses a modern style to capture the essence of the Holocaust: pain and uncertainty.

Oil/Wood

Title:

Fallen Man

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 13" x 9" x 7"

 Description:

With every last bit of spirit in him, symbolic of all the victims of the Holocaust, this man fights to survive. As he is forced into the ground he defiantly tries to hold himself up, trying to withstand the wickedness around him.

Sculpture

Title:

The Death Pits

Approximate Size: (W x H)

30" x 40"

 Description:

Perhaps one of the first thoughts anyone has about the Holocaust are the mass-graves of the victims. Lifeless bodies piled hundreds to a grave, a horror from any perspective is captured in this work for eternity.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

Despair

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 15" x 9" x 8"

 Description:

The victims of the Holocaust endured an ever-lasing struggle to survive, doing all they could to live.

Sculpture

Title:

Breaking Free

Approximate Size: (W x H)

 48" x 72"

 Description:

 The spirit of the imprisoned joined together to withstand the forces of the Nazi regime and eventually break free from the bondage.

Oil/Canvas 

Title:

Beseeching

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 Life-size

 Description:

This intense figure reaches out in prayer for comfort and strength, beseeching mercy from a source more powerful than man.

Sculpture

Title:

Displaced Persons

Approximate Size: (W x H)

31" x 46"

 Description:

After the War  and Liberation of the camps Gideon remained with the occupation in Europe, helping to relocate "displaced persons" with their families. This final episode to a war filled with anguish and inhumanity, presented a climax that would be a never-ending impression and influence on Gideon's expression as an Artist.

Oil/Canvas

Title:

 Multitude

Approximate Size: (D x W x H)

 Life-Size

 Description:

Gideon used this lone figure with  no face to portray  the faceless multitudes of victims of this terrible human tragedy. The arms and hands are submissively raised. Gideon hopes that as each one views this dramatic work, they will put their own faces in the emptiness and become a part of the remembrance.

Sculpture w/Pedestal

Recent Feedback from Viewers

"Dear Gideon, I am a 78 year old retired U. S. Air Force officer. I flew as a pilot in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. After the German surrender on May 8, 1945, I remained in Europe to assist in repatriating the survivors of the concentration camps. I lifted half dead bodies of my fellow Jews aboard my aircraft and laid them gently on litters. Few were able to walk or speak. With medical personal also aboard, I flew hundreds of these survivors back to their countries of origin. Many stared at me with a tiny, tearful smile as if I was their Messiah. I can still see their gaunt and bewildered faces looking up at me as I explained to them that the nightmare was over. I later realized that this bitter sweet mission was my purpose in life. Your extraordinary works will help to perpetuate the memories of the millions who didn't survive. Bless you. " I. J. Harris

 ".... Strange, horrible, wonderful, hideous, beautiful!" Thank you,  C.J.

 ".... My name is Anna and I am in tenth grade.... I am writing a research paper on how the holocaust affected art and I was wondering your personal opinion on the subject. How do you think the holocaust affected art? I have formed my own conclusions but I wanted an to see the opinion from a TRUE artist. I have been researching your personal works as well and I must say they are truly inspirational. I admire your ability to demonstrate the cruelty of man through the works of art. And I especially admire your desire to teach the inhumanities of man as realistically and beautifully possible. Your works of art have created a fire in me to learn as much as I can on how not to repeat the mistakes of man, as in the past. And for this I thank you." Anna H.

"Dear Gideon, My name is Celline and I'm a high school student writing a history paper on the effects of the Holocaust in the Arts. I know that someone has already asked you this question before, because I've been to your site. Like her, I have made my own conclusions about this topic, but I would like to have the opinion of an established artist. If it isn't too much to ask, would it be possible for me to get in contact with Anna H. (the student who asked the same question) so we can compare notes on the subject. I appreciate you taking your time to read this e-mail and I thank you for your emotion-filled works of art because they touch my soul and give me a lot to think about." Sincerely, Celline

"I especially love Gideon's work on the 'Holocaust.' He has made a statement for all humanity. Thank you very much." Sincerely, Clara Barton

 "I am a sophomore in high school. recently I was assigned to do a report for English class and not knowing what I was going into, picked the topic of the changes the holocaust has made to artwork in general or children of the survivors. Searching for information on the web, I stumbled onto your website. I must first say that you are a wonderful artist and cant imagine how wonderful your pieces must look in person. When I imagine what the holocaust must have been like, many times I see exactly what you have depicted in your paintings and sculptures..." Sincerely, Willie Indianna

Thank you very much for your help in keeping the memory of those who died alive for people like me to learn from....and Thank you for giving me a personal interview for my school paper." Rebeca R. (9 yrs old)

"Hi Gideon...
I am a 17 year old senior in high school who has to write a term paper on the interrelationship of the arts. I chose to compare your painting "Chained" and the Indigo Girls song "this train revised"....and the Holocaust and how the music and the art combine to express the hardships that the Holocaust caused. I hope that you can help me in my search and discussion about a topic that America and the world should Never forget about..." Thanks, Jen, N.J.

"An inspiration! ...with gratitude from the relative of a survivor." Peete C.

"I took the liberty of writing to some of the Museums in Israel about your Holocaust work. They must see it. There is nothing like it that conveys the spirit of such an event in history. I hope they have the insight to look at this great work." Sincerely, Dr. Manning R.

"...as the world turns and as the world forgets, Gideon ages; but, his mind remains fixed to the sights of 1945.How many more times must man plead, scream,& cry out? Men like Gideon are becoming more and more scarce. Soon they will be extinct; but, then it won't matter....for man will shortly follow suit." Dr. Bruce Levy