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"No personal style can develop and mature in a span of a year or so. And if there
is any conviction in the form of expression an artist chooses then that conviction
will stay with that artist for some time."

Ismar David's style whether in calligraphy or illustration is unmistakable. One can trace
its development over the course of his life's work, beginning with his training in Germany
through his professional career in Jerusalem and New York. He was true to his belief in
serving the text first, yet his vibrant artistic personality is evident in everything that he did.
          Ismar was born in the city of Breslau, then part of Germany, in 1910. A poor student,
he left school at the age of 14 to become apprentice to a housepainter. Journeyman's papers
made it possible for him to leave for Berlin in 1928 to attend the Municipal Arts and Crafts
School at Charlottenberg where where he studied decorative painting.
          In 1932, after winning an international design competition, the young man traveled to
Jerusalem. The city became his home for the next twenty years. In addition to a broad range
of commercial, architectural and interior design work, Ismar developed David Hebrew, which
broke new ground when it was issued by Intertype in 1954.
          In 1953, he moved to New York City and opened his studio. Ismar designed
decorative elements for synagogues, but the bulk of his work was graphic. He designed
well over 200 book jackets and covers, working for Random House, Harper Torchbooks,
Harper and Row, T.Y. Crowell, Alfred A. Knopf, the Union of American Hebrew
Congregationsand the Jewish Publication Society among many others. For the Fleming H.
Revell, Co., he designed jackets and illustrated a series of volumes on religious themes.
In 1971 The Limited Editions Club commissioned 12 illustrations and additional decorations
for Pascal's Les Pensees. A bilingual edition of The Psalms (Union of American Hebrew
Congregations, 1973) perhaps his most personal work, incorporates his ideas about
illustration and book and type design. Many years as a calligraphy teacher at Pratt
Institute and at The Cooper Union, both in New York, helped Ismar develop his two
instructional works, Our Calligraphic Heritage (1979) and The Hebrew Letter:
Calligraphic Variations (1990).
           Architectural work absorbed much of his attention in later years. In 1965 Ismar began
a long association with Pinelawn Memorial Park in Farmingdale, Long Island, New York.
He planned the layout of the park, including features and fountains, and designed building
complexes and interiors. But he always made time for graphics. In 1991, he designed
and illustrated a limited edition of the Book of Jonah.
          One of Ismar's great pleasures was conducting his own Seder each year at Passover.
His festive table included a Seder plate and Elijah's cup of his own design as well as a
Sabbath candlestick holder. With a deep affection for and understanding of Jewish culture
and traditions, he developed The Family Haggadah for Passover with his partner Helen
Brandshaft who rendered the calligraphy for the Hebrew text and prepared the work for
publication. Ismar David died in 1996.

ABOUT THE PRESS
The Shunammite Press opened its doors in late November 1998 with the publication of
The Family Haggadah for Passover, designed and illustrated by Ismar David. Like Ismar,
we are committed to qualité, utilité, calligraphie. Pardon my French.