Dindon - pl. XIII from Bestiaire portfolio

Abram Krol

A portion of the colophon from this portfolio, which was published by the artist, is loosely translated from the French as: "This engraved bestiary consists of 15 cut-out burins by Abram Krol and is preceded by a text extracted from the Proprietatibus Rerum ("On the Order of Things") of Barthelemy de Glanvil, known as Bartholomaeus Anglicus, translated by Jehan Corbichon in 1372 and established after the edition of Jehan Cyber published in Lyon in 1486."

Each animal is embossed into the paper from a shaped block, which has been lightly inked in a pale golden brown, and engraved lines and textures simply - but effectively - provide each creature with unique characteristics, as with this wild turkey. The turkey was brought to Europe by the Spanish around 1519, returning with Columbus.

Abram Krol was born in Pabianice, Lodz, Poland on January 22, 1919. Krol traveled to France in 1938 to study civil engineering at the University of Caen. In 1939, at the beginning of World War II he joined the Foreign Legion. After he was demobilized, he became a mechanic at a garage in Avignon. Although he was Jewish he survived the war using false identities.

In 1943 Krol began studying art, taking courses in sculpture at the School of Fine Art. During this time he described himself as a "Sunday painter." In 1944 he moved to Paris. After the war, he took up engraving, studying with fellow Polish ex-patriot Joseph Hecht, who was also Jewish and from Lodz and taught S.W. Hayter engraving and encouraged him to start what became Atelier 17. The first exhibition of his works was at the Katia Granoff Gallery in Paris in 1946.

Krol illustrated over 20 literary works from the late 1940s through the 1960s. He also engraved medals for the Paris mint and painted murals for the French school system. He also designed tapestries and painted over 200 enamels. His work can be found in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris; the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; The British Museum, London; Houghton Library at Harvard in Boston; Bodleian Library, Oxford and the Palace of the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. In 1960 he was invited to exhibit at the Venice Biennale. He exhibited extensively throughout the world, winning many awards.

Abram (Abraham) Krol died on October 9, 2001 in Paris.