Social Concern and Left Politics in Jewish American Art 1880-1940

Of the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Jewish artists, a large number turned toward radical socialist politics. These artists, even the most secularized among them, were deeply influenced by the Jewish traditions, teachings, and culture in which they were raised. The communal thrust of Judaism that calls upon Jews to bear the responsibility for the moral, spiritual, and material welfare of their community informed the creative output of these artists.

Baigell explores the meaningful yet little-examined connections between religious heritage, social concerns, and political radicalism in the Jewish American art world from the time of the Great Migration from Eastern Europe in the 1880s to the beginning of World War II.

Matthew Baigell is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Art History at Rutgers University. He is the author of numerous books, including American Artists, Jewish Images, and Jewish Art in America: An Introduction.