Chassidische legenden
Chassidische Legenden (Chassidic Legends) was published by De Blauwe Schuit (The Blue Barge), a publishing collective founded in 1940. Under the nose of the occupying forces, De Blauwe Schuit published clandestine works during the Second World War, of which Chassidische Legenden is the most important. These adaptations of Jewish narratives told by Austrian Jewish philosopher of religion Martin Buber (1878-1965) were translated by publisher August Henkels (1906-1975), with artist and printer Hendrik Nicolaas Werkman (1882-1945) creating the accompanying prints.
Chassidische Legenden appeared in two volumes, folders with loose prints and a few sheets of text that Werkman himself used to call 'suites'. The first volume appeared in 1942, the second in January 1944. This was done in small print runs; for example, Werkman printed only 20 numbered copies of suite 1, of which the KB now owns suite 1 no. 5, along with no. 14 of suite 2. The prints Werkman created for this issue are among his best-known works and make Chassidische Legenden one of the highlights of the KB collection.
How did Chassidische Legenden end up in the KB?
Chassidische Legenden is best known for the prints of H.N. Werkman. He first made a series of proofs of the prints, which are now in the possession of the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam. The original plan was for Werkman to print 10 copies but he ended up producing 20 due to high demand. Werkman selected all the buyers himself and had to disappoint several prospective buyers because the first suite sold out as early as 1943.
The copies that have since come into the possession of the KB were a gift from collector A.J. Eschauzier, who bought them from the estate of De Blauwe Schuit publisher Ate Zuithoff (1912-2009). How Zuithoff acquired these particular suites is not known, as they were originally owned by painters Ekke Kleima (number 5, suite 1) and Oscar Gubitz (number 14, suite 2).
Werkman's prints
The prints for Chassidische Legenden were preceded by a series of proofs, which are all slightly different from the final prints. The prints of the later edition are often darker and more abstract, without losing their expressive power.
Werkman himself felt that his style slowly changed as he worked on the series, aiming to make later editions less colourful, or rather more evenly blended.
Werkman used various highly labour-intensive techniques for his prints. The print on suite 1, sheet 1 (see illustration), for instance, has a yellow background that was irregularly applied with an ink roller. Other colours were printed on top, such as red for the forest path. Werkman used stencils for the trees, clumps of grass and people, and used the side of the ink roller to draw stripes and highlights. As a result, no two editions are quite the same.
Werkman and De Blauwe Schuit
Werkman was a printer and an artist. He was a member of the Groningen art circle De Ploeg and also published an art magazine, Blad voor Kunst. Werkman used to call his pieces druksels, after the Dutch word for prints, and he experimented with printing techniques from the very beginning of his career as an artist.
During the Second World War, Werkman met August Henkels, Adri Buning and Ate Zuithoff. The foursome would go on to produce 40 issues under the banner of De Blauwe Schuit, with Werkman taking care of the printing and illustrations. On 13 March 1945, Werkman was arrested by the Sicherheitsdienst, possibly because he was suspected of producing illegal prints. On 10 April, he was shot along with nine other prisoners.
How to view Chassidische legenden
Suites 1 and 2 of the Chassidische Legenden can only be viewed online. You cannot check out the work in the KB but you can submit a request to the curator to view it.