A Meaning-Based Approach to Art Therapy: From the Holocaust to Contemporary Practices

203 Pages·2022·12.711 MB·English

by  Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek

A MEANING-BASED
APPROACH TO
ART THERAPY
A Meaning-Based Approach to Art Therapy contextualizes the phenomenon of Holo-
caust artwork in the field of art therapy and uses this canon of artwork to support the
inclusion of logotherapy in art therapy theory and practice.
The author expounds on a study in which she interviewed surviving Holocaust
artists about how they were able to create their artworks while in Nazi captivity.
Divided into three parts, the book follows the chronological order of her inquiry. It
first presents theory, then research, and ends with implications for the practice of art
therapy. The research chapters set out the process and results of the author’s phe-
nomenological inquiry. They address how art making during the Holocaust allowed
captive artists to bear witness, leave a legacy and retain their humanity. In the final
part, the author reveals how art therapists can use concepts from her study to sup-
port the progress of their clients. She advocates for the application of logotherapy,
an existential philosophy that emphasizes finding meaning to facilitate healing and
personal growth.
Practicing art therapists and students of art therapy will find this book to be an
excellent resource on logotherapy, an updated perspective on existentialism, and a
contemporary examination of phenomenology.
Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek, DAT, ATR-BC, LCPAT is an art therapist in private practice
in Annapolis, Maryland. She is committed to art therapy advocacy and worked with
state legislators to develop the first clinical art therapy license in the state of Maryland.
She has served on the Maryland Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists
and on the board of directors of the American Art Therapy Association.
“This book traces the beginnings of logotherapy and explores its intersection with art
therapy. Dr. Hlavek’s work reminds us that amid the unimaginable circumstances of
the Holocaust, the arts emerged as a humanizing force. In the face of horrific suffer-
ing, artists asserted their ability to respond with courageous creatively. As such, it is a
testament to the healing power of art, then and now.”
Bruce Moon, PhD, ATR-BC, HLM
“This innovative book brilliantly explores the connection between art and the Holo-
caust. Interviewing surviving artists, Dr Hlavek explores the creative experience to
understand how victims found meaning in suffering and makes an invaluable contri-
bution to Holocaust education, art and art therapy.”
Hana Bor, PhD
“In this extraordinary book, Dr. Hlavek brings us with her on a deeply impactful yet
ultimately hopeful journey into the meaning of artwork created by Holocaust victims.
With crystal-clear writing, Dr. Hlavek presents her extensive scholarship and research
into the use of art making in the face of death and horror. She shares how those who
made art during captivity in the Holocaust documented both atrocities and kind-
nesses, upheld a sense of personhood, found purpose and meaning, and ultimately
preserved hope for themselves and us all. Dr. Hlavek’s perspective spans beyond indi-
vidual trauma to provide an existential affirmation of existence and what truly defines
us as human.”
Gioia Chilton, PhD, ATR-BC, LCPAT, CSAC
A MEANING-BASED
APPROACH TO
ART THERAPY
From the Holocaust to
Contemporary Practices
Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek
Cover image: © Alice Ehrmann Shek (1927–2007). Untitled. Terezín, 1943. Property of the
Shek family.
First published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek
The right of Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek to be identified as author of this work has been asserted
in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any
form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks,
and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Hlavek, Elizabeth Hadara, author.
Title: A meaning based approach to art therapy : from the holocaust to
contemporary practices / Elizabeth Hadara Hlavek.
Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. | Includes bibliographical
references and index. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2022009877 (print) | LCCN 2022009878 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367750770 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367750763 (paperback) |
ISBN 9781003160885 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Logotherapy. | Art therapy. | Phenomenological psychology. |
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Psychological aspects.
Classification: LCC RC489.L6 H53 2023 (print) | LCC RC489.L6 (ebook) |
DDC 616.89/1656--dc23/eng/20220629
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022009877
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022009878
ISBN: 978-0-367-75077-0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-75076-3 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-16088-5 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003160885
Typeset in Baskerville
by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd.
In memory of my grandfather, Sidney “Buddy” Levin, who never
stopped making art.

CONTENTS
List of Figures viii
List of Tables xi
Acknowledgments xii
INTRODUCTION 1
PART 1
THE ART OF THE HOLOCAUST 3
1 INTEGRATING THE ART OF THE HOLOCAUST WITH ART
THERAPY THEORY 5
2 THE PHENOMENON OF HOLOCAUST ARTWORK 21
3 CATEGORIZING THE ART OF THE HOLOCAUST 40
4 ARTS CONTRIBUTING TO COMMUNITY 58
PART 2
RESEARCH 75
5 ORGANIZING A STUDY OF HOLOCAUST ART 77
6 NARRATIVES OF HOLOCAUST ARTISTS 92
7 THE PHENOMENOLOGICAL INQUIRY AND RESULTS 112
PART 3
PRACTICE 129
8 GROUNDING THE ART OF THE HOLOCAUST IN THE
PHILOSOPHIES OF EXISTENTIALISM AND LOGOTHERAPY 131
9 INTEGRATING LOGOTHERAPY AND ART THERAPY 149
10 ART LOGOTHERAPY IN PRACTICE 167
Epilogue 182
Index 184
FIGURES
CHAPTER 1
1.1 Halina Olomicki (1919–2007). Six Figures. Auschwitz-Birkenau, 1943.
Courtesy of the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum Art Collection,
Western Galilee, Israel. 14
1.2 Charlotte Buresova (1904–1983). Encounter in the Camp. Terezín,
1943–1945. Courtesy of the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum Art
Collection, Western Galilee, Israel. 16
CHAPTER 2
2.1 Thomas Geve (b. 1929). Disinfection. Buchenwald displaced
persons camp, 1945. Pencil, colored pencil and watercolor on paper,
10 × 15 cm. Collection of the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem.
Gift of the artist. Photo © Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. 25
2.2 by Zofia Stępień-Bator (1920–2019). Portrait of Mala Zimetbaum made
in the camp by her fellow prisoner. Auschwitz, 1944. Published with
permission from the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. 26
2.3 Jacques Gotko (1900–1944). Portrait of A. Alperine. Royallieu-
Compiègne camp, France, 1941–1942. Linocut on paper.
Courtesy of the Ghetto Fighters’ House Museum Art Collection,
Western Galilee, Israel. 31
2.4 L’Abbe Jean Daligault (1899–1945). Sculpted Face. Besancon, France,
1943. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of
Musée de la Resistance et de la Deportation. 32
2.5 L’Abbe Jean Daligault (1899–1945). Magistrate. Besancon, France,
1943. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of
Musée de la Resistance et de la Deportation. 32
2.6 Hannah Messinger (1920–). Stitched Bra. Merzdorf camp, 1944.
Courtesy of the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center.
Gift of Hannah Messinger. Photography by Jesus Mejia. 35
CHAPTER 3
3.1 Franciszek Jaźwiecki (1900–1946). A Portrait of Piotr Kajzer. Buchen-
wald, 1944. Published with permission from the Auschwitz-Birkenau
State Museum. 43
3.2 Leo Breuer (1893–1975). Path between the Barracks. Gurs camp,
France, 1941. Watercolor on paper 22 × 30.2 cm. Collection of
the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. Gift of Ms. Gita Lehman,
Israel. Photo © Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. 44
Figures ix
3.3 Francis Reisz (1909–1984). Pont Marie in Paris. Auschwitz 1942. Cour-
tesy of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. 47
3.4 Lili Andrieux (1914–1996). Together—For How Long? Gurs camp,
France, 1942. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy
of Lili Andrieux. 48
3.5 Mieczysław Kościelniak (1912–1993). Friendly Favour. Auschwitz,
1943. Brown crayon, paper, 21 × 29.5 cm. Printed with
permission from the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. 51
3.6 Pavel Fantl (1903–1945). Metamorphosis. Theresienstadt ghetto, 1944.
Watercolor, pencil and India ink on paper, 22.8 × 29.7 cm. Collec-
tion of the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. Gift of Ida Fantlová,
the artist’s mother, courtesy of Ze’ev and Alice Shek, Caesarea,
Israel. Photo © Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. 54
CHAPTER 4
4.1 Karel Fleischmann (1897–1944). Living Quarters—Sudeten Kaserne.
Theresienstadt ghetto, 1943. India ink and wash on paper, 22.5 ×
33.2 cm. Collection of the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem. Gift
of the Prague Committee for Documentation, courtesy of Ze’ev and
Alice Shek, Caesarea, Israel. Photo © Yad Vashem Art Museum,
Jerusalem. 60
4.2 Lili Andrieux (1914–1996). Women Washing Themselves II. Gurs camp,
France, 1940. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy
of Lili Andrieux. 63
4.3 Embroidered doily made by a Polish inmate in Ravensbrück depict-
ing the camp. Ravensbrück, 1944. Courtesy of the United States
Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Bozenna M.
Urbanowicz Gilbride. 64
4.4 Artist Unknown. Album from Budy Subcamp. 1943–1944. From the
collections of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. 67
CHAPTER 5
5.1 Ella Liebermann-Shiber (1927–1988). Roll Call. Neustadt camp, sub-
camp of Ravensbrück, 1945. Courtesy of the Ghetto Fighters’ House
Museum Art Collection, Western Galilee, Israel. 80
5.2 Franz Reisz (1909–1984). Auschwitz. Auschwitz, 1946. Courtesy of the
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection. Gift of
Sue Peyser. 81
CHAPTER 6
6.1 Frederick Terna (1923–). Near the Railway. Terezín, 1943. Courtesy of
Beit Theresienstadt, Kibbutz Givat Hayim- Ihud, Israel. 93