“The People’s Painter: How Ben Shahn Fought For Justice With Art”
by Cynthia Levinson, illustrated by Evan Turk.
Abrams Books for Young Readers, New York, 2021, 48 pages, Grades 2-4.
When people think of great art, the gorgeous paintings of Michelangelo, Raphael or similar artists come to mind. Because of this, art is often connected to aesthetics and beauty. This is completely appropriate.
But what happens when an artist is trying to paint painful situations or difficult political events? These events are not tranquil so the artist must use images that correspond to these conditions. This usually means that the art is unsettling and visualizes a troubled world. Though this art can be jarring for those used to “beautiful” paintings, this art also tells us about people we need to care for and social circumstances that need to be remedied. Ben Shahn was such an artist. Cynthia Levinson writes a telling biography of his life in “The People’s Painter: How Ben Shahn Fought For Justice With Art.”
Ben is born in a Jewish shtetl (small town) in Lithuania in 1898. Several years after Ben’s birth, his father is exiled to Siberia for trying to organize workers. As a young child, Ben begins drawing on any type of paper and clearly has a talent for art. But life is brutal for Lithuanian Jews. His father eventually escapes from the prison camps and settles in New York.
After several pogroms (attacks on Jewish towns), the Shahn family immigrates to New York. There the 8-year-old boy must learn a new language and a new culture. His love for drawing grows but tragedy again strikes. Ben’s father loses his job and the boy must drop out of school to help support his family. Fortunately, he is apprenticed to a lithographer. He begins drawing posters, cards and lithographs for the business and becomes highly talented and well regarded. But his conscience wants him to do more than just draw pretty pictures for businesses.
This leads Ben to begin drawing pictures of people suffering in New York and, later, throughout the United States. His pictures shake people out of their complacency. During the Great Depression, Shahn begins painting murals commissioned by the United States Government. As World War II falls upon the world, Ben is called upon to draw posters and paint pictures to counteract the Nazis. The power of this art is unmistakable, but some find it offensive and want him to change the subjects of his paintings. But how can Shahn change, the brutality of the Nazis is horrible. What happens to Ben Shahn as a result of this?
Does Ben Shahn change his style of work? How does he use art to move the attitudes of people? Why does his work have such a long term positive effect on the United States? How does Ben use art to find justice? To discover the answers to these and other questions, go to the library and check out this important biography, “The People’s Painter: How Ben Shahn Fought For Justice With Art” by Cynthia Levinson.
This picture book is the winner of the Sibert Medal in 2022. This award is given annually by the American Library Association to the most distinguished nonfiction book of the year. Levinson writes with intensity and emotion and Evan Turk paints powerful portraits of Ben Shahn. While the book shows the sufferings of the lower classes in the United States, it also depicts the fearless courage of this great champion of positive change. It can be used in middle grade classrooms while teaching about the causes of prejudice and the need to confront and overcome these evils. Highly recommended.
