''I Never Saw Another Butterfly: Children's Drawings and Poems from Terezin Concentration Camp, 1942–1944'' is a collection of works of

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

and

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

children who lived in the concentration camp Theresienstadt. They were created at the camp in secret art classes taught by Austrian artist and educator Friedl Dicker-Brandeis. The book takes its title from a poem by Pavel Friedmann, a young man born in 1921 who was incarcerated at Theresienstadt and was later killed at

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

. The works were compiled after World War II by Czech art historian Hana Volavková, the only curator of the Jewish Museum in Prague to survive the Holocaust. Where known, the fate of each young author is listed. Most died prior to the camp being liberated. The original Czech edition was published in 1959 for the State Jewish Museum in Prague; the first English edition was published in 1964 by the McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Terezin

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

used Terezin, better known by the German name Theresienstadt, as a

ghetto A ghetto is a part of a city in which members of a minority group are concentrated, especially as a result of political, social, legal, religious, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished than other ...

. The majority of the Jews sent there were scholars, professionals, artists and musicians. Before all out war broke out, the Nazis made plans to deceive International Red Cross inspectors into believing that Jews were being treated humanely. To accomplish this, when the Red Cross came through, inmates were encouraged to take up creative activities. They were given instruments and art supplies, encouraged to hold concerts too. Within the camp, parks, grassy areas and flower beds, concert venues and statues were installed to hide the truth; that most of the inmates were going to be killed. In fact, after the Red Cross left, most of the people who helped fool the Red Cross were immediately sent to

. This façade masked the fact that of the 144,000 Jews were sent there, about 33,000 died, mostly because of the appalling conditions (hunger, stress, disease, and an epidemic of

typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposu ...

at the very end of the war). About 88,000 were deported to

and other extermination camps. At the end of the war there were 17,247 survivors. Part of the fortification (''Small Fortress'') served as the largest

prison in the

Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was a partially-annexation, annexed territory of Nazi Germany that was established on 16 March 1939 after the Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1938–1945), German occupation of the Czech lands. The protector ...

, separated from the ghetto. Around 90,000 people went through it, and 2,600 of those died there. It was liberated on May 9, 1945 by the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

The play

''I Never Saw Another Butterfly'' is also the name of a full length play and a one-act version by Celeste Raspanti. She based the play on a book of poetry and drawings made by the children of Terezin. The play centers on Raja Englanderova, one of the children who survived Terezin, and her family, friends, and classmates. She shares her story of living in the concentration camp, while retaining a world filled with butterflies and flowers with other children in the camp. Raspanti's play was adapted into a musical by Joseph Robinette and E. A. Alexander.

Song cycle

In 1968 Jewish-Canadian composer Srul Irving Glick wrote the Holocaust-themed song cycle ''I Never Saw Another Butterfly'' for mezzosoprano (contralto) and orchestra or piano. The songs are based on children's poems from the concentration camp at Theresienstadt (1942–44). The cycle consists of 6 songs: # ''To Olga'' # ''Yes thats the way things are'' # ''The little mouse'' # ''On a sunny evening'' # ''Narrative'' # ''The butterfly.'' In 1972 the songs were issued on LP (with

Maureen Forrester Maureen Kathleen Stewart Forrester, (July 25, 1930 – June 16, 2010) was a Canadian operatic contralto. Life and career Maureen Forrester was born and grew up in Montreal, Quebec, one of four children of Thomas Forrester, a British cabinetma ...

and John Newmark) by Canadian label Select (CC-15.073).

References

External links

Celeste Raspanti's pageThe Butterfly Project, Internet ArchiveOfficial I Never Saw Another Butterfly Page (broken link)I Never Saw Another Butterfly reading packet (Holocaust Center for Humanity)
{{Theresienstadt category:1942 drawings category:1943 drawings category:1944 drawings 1994 non-fiction books 1994 poetry books The Holocaust in popular culture Personal accounts of the Holocaust Poems about the Holocaust Classical music about the Holocaust Czech books Jewish art Schocken Books books

Terezin

The play

Song cycle

See also

References

External links