About the artist Lilien

Excerpt from 'Bücher der Bibel', 1915

ntiquariaat Lilien wants to pay homage to the Jugendstil artist Ephraim Moses Lilien (1874-1925) by adopting his name.

Ephraim Moses Lilien was born on May 23, 1874 in Drohobycz in Galicia, Austria, where he spent his childhood. Stefan Zweig, a later friend of Ephraim Moses Lilien, wrote about Galicië: it is a poor and pathetic land with grey, cold rocks in the Karpates.

After his second grade at the Gymnasium, Ephraim Moses Lilien was forced to leave school, because his father could not afford to pay the tuition anymore. In Lemberg, he learned to paint and use graphical techniques, at the Academy of Arts of Krakau he was lectured by Jan Matejko from 1890 to 1892. Via Vienna and Munich, Lilien came to Berlin in 1899; the metropole, where he joined the group of artists, named 'die Kommenden', most of which members where Zionists-- Lilien included. In this group he got acquainted with personalities as: Elske Lasker-Schüler, Peter Hille, Erich Müsam, Börries Freiherr von Münchhausen and Stefan Zweig. In 1900, the book "Juda" was published, a consciously Zionist book, in which the century-long oppression of the Jews is clearly documented. Soon afterwards, Lilien earns a reputation with graphical work in 'Lieder des Ghetto' of Morris Rosenfeld. In Berlin Lilien meets Theodor Herzl.

The Jewish Publishing Company, Berlin (1902)

From left to right, top: Ephraim Mose Lilien, Chaim Weizmann and David Trietsch, bottom: Berthold Feiwel and Martin Buber

Lilien attends the Fifth Zionist Congress in 1901 in Basel and joins the democratic-zionist fraction. In 1902, Martin Buber, Berthold Feiwel and Chaim Weizmann have founded the Jewisch Publishing Company in Berlin and before the publishing of the Jewish Almanac 5663 in 1902, Lilien becomes responsible for the artistic policy. Lilien embodies the soul of the artistic movement within the Zionism and between 1904 and 1906 he devoted himself to Bazalel Academy in Jerusalem. He directed the 'Painting and Colours' department for five months and also teached 'Black and White Drawing'. In 1906 he married Helene Magnus. From 1912 to 1915, Lilien created his magnificent illustrations for 'die Bücher der Bibel'. 1923 is the year of his first large exhibition in New York, whereafter in 1924 an exhibition honouring his work in the loge house of Bnei Brith is opened with an introduction of Chaim Weizmann, the later president of Israel.

During a visit of Badenweiler (1925), Lilien dies of a hart attack; his eternal resting place lies in his former residence, Braunschweig.

[Nederlandse vertaling]