is this poster by the Shamir Brothers? Inbox X Dan Walsh http://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/the-unified-tax 10:26 AM (10 hours ago) Reply Yoram E. Shamir to me show details 12:54 PM (8 hours ago) No. From: Dan Walsh [mailto:ppparchives@gmail.com] Sent: Saturday, May 07, 2011 5:26 PM To: Yoram E. Shamir Subject: is this poster by the Shamir Brothers? http://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/the-unified-tax
Comes out a little awkward in English: Hi Dan: You are very kind. How does this shot work for you? Actually I can give you the translation myself, if you do not mind. You might want Eric to check it. Top title: The Single Tax Script below it: Your dues are for all. The dues from all are for you. Bottom: The Overall Histadrut (I'll not translate that) of Hebrew Workers in Eretz Israel. The Executive Committee. The Central Tax Office. (I might use membership dues instead of tax). The red book's label is "Member's Card - although the Hebrew "chaver" here can be understood as Comrade, rather than Member). The inscription on the bottom side right is the name of the publisher. As latinized "Photo Offset Omanim Me'uhadim Ltd (abbreviated Be'iravon Moogbal" Tel Aviv". Another friend suggested the artist may be Yochanan (or Yohanan) Simon, a leftist artist who was quite popular in the 40s. http://www.farkash-gallery.com/91149/Simon-Yohanan http://www.farkash-gallery.com/image/users/91149/detail/big/1243632.JPG for an example of his work. Style wise and with a stretch, it might be his. As I had earlier mentioned, we found no signature or name of any sort on the poster. Cheers Alex -------Original Message------- From: Dan Walsh Date: 2/6/2010 11:25:06 PM To: anzactwo@bellsouth.net Subject: The Histadrut poster.. http://www.palestineposterproject.org/poster/unified-tax Hi Alex, ...it dawned on me that one way to maybe learn more about the history of your poster was to put it in my "Sightings" gallery. Someone may write in some day with some more data or background. I will be sure to email you anything that comes in. May I impose on you to take another shot of the poster? If you keep the center of your camera lens more or less in the center of the poster you will get a more square shot. It would also help to turn off the flash. I have asked Eric to provide a complete translation of the Hebrew text and I will add it to the page when he sends it in. best, Dan Walsh The Unified Tax Your payments for the sake of the whole (everyone), everyone's payments for your sake. Bottom: The general union (histadrut) of Hebrew workers in Eretz Israel - The worker's committee - Bureau of central taxation Dan- Don't know how to break it to these people, but I don't think the poster is an original. The lower right corner says: Special Art Photo Offset Ltd., Tel Aviv. I don't think photo offset printing was available in the 40s and 50s, but tell me if I'm wrong. At least they didn't pay anything for it. e. Begin forwarded message: From: "Alex Markin" Date: February 1, 2010 12:43:28 PM EST To: "Eric Zakim" Cc: "Dan Walsh" , "Marilyn Markin" Subject: Re: [Contact Form Submission] Thank you Eric for your detailed response and interest. Attached is the lower right corner. A bit more on how we found it. My wife, a Yank, has a super eye for interesting antique posters, engravings and maps including assorted 18th and 19th century items on the Haifa Bay area and Palestine as a whole, which we also have on a wall in my home office. Somehow she spotted this poster in a rather run-down antique store in West Palm Beach, mounted in a filthy frame and under dusty glass and negotiated its purchase, for.......... $2. At first she thought it was some Cuban Castroite realism, something we might expect here in South Florida, felt the art work was very interesting and for that price did not take any closer look. When she brought it home, I looked at it and practically said "Eureka!". I am a chemical engineering graduate from the Technion, BSc in 1962; MSc in 1964, and now still active with global chemical companies doing mergers and acquisitions and strategic growth. So the Hebrew was quite clear. I would appreciate a contact name at the Central Zionist Archives in Jerusalem, maybe by forwarding her or him a copy of the poster and putting us all in touch. I think I need that person's help in determining whether they have it. My search there came up with nothing. You mentioned below that the results of this submission may be viewed athttp://www.palestineposterproject.org/node/878/submission/37 I do not have authorization to see that. Cheers Alex Alex Markin 2882 Banyan Blvd. Circ. NW Boca Raton, FL 33431-6332, USA Skype - anzacboca Tel: 001-561-989-0932 -------Original Message------- From: Eric Zakim Date: 2/1/2010 12:02:00 PM To: anzactwo@bellsouth.net Cc: Dan Walsh Subject: Re: [Contact Form Submission] Dear Mr. Markin, My friend and colleague at Palestine Poster Project, Dan Walsh, forwarded me your query. First of all, congratulation on finding such a nice poster. I'm quite jealous. In general, your instincts seem quite right to me. I would also date the poster from the 40s or early 50s, mostly likely from the 1940s. The unified tax that is the subject of the poster was initiated in 1937 (and discontinued only in 1995). But the clothing and, more important, the style of the figuration, especially in the central figure, would lead me to think that this is from the 1940s and early 1950s. I might guess as the graphic artist who drew this, but before that, why don't you send a photo of the vertical lettering on the lower right side of the poster. I can't make it out and I think that will tell us the printing shop and perhaps too the artist. I will also check a couple of catalogs of the principal suspects I have in mind. As for archives, the only place that might have a copy of this poster would be the Central Zionist Archives in Jerusalem. You can try them at http://www.zionistarchives.org.il/ZA/pMainE.aspx. Dan Walsh can probably give you a contact name there for someone in the poster division. Theirs is certainly the most extensive collection in the world of Zionist posters, and they collect all the Histadrut posters they can get their hands on. As for socialist realism, there too you are generally correct. At the time of the poster, the Histadrut was fully in the control of former Russians, most of whom came to Palestine on the heals of the Bolshevik revolution, not as escapees but as spreaders-of-the-word. Of course, Ben-Gurion and Katznelson were not Bolsheviks, but they easily embraced socialist realism because of its centralizing tendencies—like the Bolsheviks, they were great believers in centralized party control. Israel, in fact, was the only country outside of the Soviet bloc that embraced socialist realism as a nationalist aesthetic (a very interesting topic for research). That said, do not discount as well the effect in the poster of a certain American war propaganda aesthetic. Socialist realism had much in common with that aesthetic, and the natural overlaps allowed for an easy movement of images from east to west, especially for the Zionists. In any event, I would be interested to see an image of the lower right corner and whether that yields more information. Best, Eric Zakim Associate Professor Coordinator, Program in Modern Hebrew Language and Literature School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures University of Maryland, College Park On Jan 31, 2010, at 8:24 PM, Dan Walsh wrote: Dr. Zakim...the floor is yours... danwalsh Begin forwarded message: From: "The Palestine Poster Project Archives" Date: January 31, 2010 8:14:52 PM EST To: liberation@igc.org Subject: [Contact Form Submission] Reply-To: "The Palestine Poster Project Archives" Submitted on February 01, 2010 Submitted by anonymous user: [65.10.121.78] Submitted values are: Your name: Alex Markin Your e-mail address: anzactwo@bellsouth.net Subject: Old Histadrut Poster Category: General question or comment Poster Upload: http://www.palestineposterproject.org/sites/aod/files/webform/uploads/Ja... Message: Hi: We found this poster at a local antique store in Palm Beach, Florida. We framed it, and it now occupies a handsome spot on my office wall - a super example of what I'd call Socialist realism. We are wondering whether you know anything about its origin. I have not seen it anywhere. The clothing indicates it might be from the 40s or early 50s. Calls to the Histadrut archives were unanswered. What do you know about it? Best regards, Alex Markin, Boca Raton, FL The results of this submission may be viewed at: http://www.palestineposterproject.org/node/878/submission/37