Warsaw
Poster
1944 (made)
1944 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The Warsaw statue pictured here is a poignant allegory of the city's suffering under the German occupation which began in 1939. The image also suggests salvation, with the Christ figure gesturing towards the light. This could refer to the glimpse of liberation gained during the August-October 1944 uprising of the Polish Home Army. Alternatively, the poster could date to the period of reprisals when Hitler razed Warsaw to the ground. The statue became famous as one of the few things to survive the destruction and could therefore appear here as both a lament and a testament of defiant hope.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Warsaw (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Colour lithograph on paper |
| Brief description | 'Warsaw' Polish Resistance poster designed by S. Lipinski, 1944 |
| Physical description | This poster, rendered in tonal ranges of red and dark blue, reads 'WARSAW' in large bold black lettering outlined in red across its upper margin. The main image is a statue of Christ Crucified erected in a town square, shown in backlit silhouette and flanked by two street lamps. Two dates also feature in the composition: '1939' and '1944'. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Gift of the American Friends of the V&A; Gift to the American Friends by Leslie, Judith and Gabri Schreyer and Alice Schreyer Batko |
| Production | "Printed in liberated Italy", in Denis Judd, Posters of World War Two, London : Wayland Publishers1972 |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The Warsaw statue pictured here is a poignant allegory of the city's suffering under the German occupation which began in 1939. The image also suggests salvation, with the Christ figure gesturing towards the light. This could refer to the glimpse of liberation gained during the August-October 1944 uprising of the Polish Home Army. Alternatively, the poster could date to the period of reprisals when Hitler razed Warsaw to the ground. The statue became famous as one of the few things to survive the destruction and could therefore appear here as both a lament and a testament of defiant hope. |
| Other number | LS.590 - Leslie Schreyer Loan Number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.284-2004 |
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| Record created | June 10, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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