Arthur Szyk Artist Jew Pole Author:Joseph P. Ansell, Arthur Szyk Artist and illustrator Arthur Szyk was a Polish Jew whose work was overwhelmingly Jewish in theme and content. In a lifetime of creativity that spanned many of the major events of the twentieth century and took him from Poland to France, England, and the United States, the mission he set himself was to use his artistic talents to serve humanity ... more »and the Jewish people. Though his politics were dictated by what he thought would be good for the Jews, his work as a political artist went well beyond a narrow definition of the Jewish cause. He is best known among Jews for his illustrated Haggadah, but the overwhelming majority of his work deals with contemporary political themes and social causes. In his native Poland, Szyk promoted the causes of freedom, toleration, and human dignity, drawing his inspiration from the Old Testament. He believed that as a Jewish artist he had a responsibility to speak for all minorities. His famous illustration of the historical Statute of Kalisz symbolized hi« less