‘Perpetrators’ On Display At Jackson Center

BY ROBERT W. PLYLER

editorial@post-journal.com

The Robert H. Jackson Center invites you to look evil, square in the eye. You might be surprised by what you see.

Through Oct. 31, the center is displaying a small but very stimulating exhibit of monotone lithographs and other objets d’art created by artist Sid Chafetz. The exhibit is titled ‘‘Perpetrators.’’

The artist, a resident of Columbus, Ohio, is emeritus professor of art at the Ohio State University. The subjects of his 42 large works are the creators of the Holocaust.

When we think of this great crime of history, we naturally think of Hitler, but the Hitlers of history do not accomplish their enormous evil without the little people, who turn the switches and drive the trucks which make it all possible.

In his artist’s statement, printed in the small catalog which is available for purchase at the center, Chafetz states that when people try to imagine evil, they usually envision devils, demons, creatures who can clearly be seen at first glance to be monsters.

In truth, the artist finds, Great evil is done by ordinary people, those who accept the premises of their states, and who therefore participate in evil, faithful in the idea that their actions are normal. He has drawn large portraits, mostly of individuals, though there are some family groupings and even a few crowd scenes.

It is now known that the people who sent out the orders for the deliberate torture and murder of millions of people, went home and had picnics with their children, played the piano, and phoned their mothers, on their birthdays.

Especially moving is the smiling, happy family portrait of Paul Joseph Goebbels, who we know murdered his wife and children before committing suicide, when the war was lost.

Chafetz shows us the faces of the people who did these things, sometimes alone in the frame, and sometimes in the performance of the everyday activities suggested above. If you look into their eyes, you see people you might meet any day of the week. It’s what author Hannah Arendt called ‘‘The banality of evil.’’

Surrounding the central figures are words which tell us the evil the subject performed, and what happened to him as a result. It is shocking to realize that the majority of the Nazi leaders were young. Many were barely 40 when the war ended and their empire crashed around them.

The beautifully-displayed exhibit occupies one medium size room and an adjacent foyer. Admission to the exhibit is free of charge. The average person could see the entire collection in about 30 minutes.

The Center is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. The center is willing to attempt to accommodate anyone who cannot view the exhibit during those hours. Phone them to discuss when you would like to see the lithographs.

If you wish to bring a group or to have a guided tour of the exhibit, phone Carol Drake at 483-6646, or e-mail cdrake@roberthjackson.org.

The Jackson Center preserves the legacy of Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who served as the principal prosecutor of accused Nazi war criminals at the Nuremberg Tribunals, following the end of World War II. Jackson was born near Jamestown and began his career as an attorney in our city.

The center occupies the eastern edge of Prendergast Ave., between Fourth and Fifth streets.

The Post-Journal

Jamestown, N.Y.

“In Review”

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Vol. 181, No. 99

Sec. A, Page 7