David Hillman (1893 – 14 May 1974) was a Lithuanian born British portrait and stained glass artist.

Early life

Hillman's father was

Shmuel Yitzchak Hillman Rabbi Shmuel Yitzchak Hillman (2 July 1868 – 1 June 1953) was a renowned Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish Talmudic scholar, posek and rabbi and served as a Beth din#Officers of a Beth/Beis Din, dayan of the London Beth Din. Life and work Shmue ...

, Head of the London Beth Din from 1914 until his retirement in 1934 at which time he immigrated to Israel. His ancestors included

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

and the

Maharal of Prague Judah Loew ben Bezalel (; between 1512 and 1526 – 17 September 1609), also known as Rabbi Loew ( Löw, Loewe, Löwe or Levai), the Maharal of Prague (), or simply the Maharal (the Hebrew acronym of "''Moreinu ha-Rav Loew''", 'Our Teacher, Rabbi ...

. Born in Lithuania in 1893, he arrived in Glasgow with his family in 1908. At 15 years old, he sought entry as a student at Charles Rennie Mackintosh's new Glasgow School of Art. This was to his father's displeasure, as he was an only son and appeared to be prepared to break a tradition of father-son rabbis. He was awarded scholarships for a total of 12 years at the school and, after his parents’ move to London in 1914, at the Royal Academy, where he graduated in 1920.

Education and career

Hillman studied portraiture under William Orpen and John Singer Sargent, and stained glass under Sir George Frampton. During this period, largely coincident with the First World War, he engaged in biblical studies and then graduated as a rabbi, receiving his ordination from the Sephardi Chief Rabbi, Moses Gaster. He was appointed Minister at the Sandys Row Synagogue in London's East End. He painted the British Home Secretary in 1920, Edward Shortt, the distinguished Indian/Jewish Sassoon family, and his uncle

Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog ( he, יצחק אייזיק הלוי הרצוג; 3 December 1888 – 25 July 1959), also known as Isaac Herzog or Hertzog, was the first Chief Rabbi of Ireland, his term lasted from 1921 to 1936. From 1936 until his deat ...

. He often took many months to complete one painting; he made a poor living, particularly during the Second World War. He moved to stained glass in 1935, following a commission to design a window in Leeds Synagogue commemorating the Jubilee of King George V. Thereafter, he designed full sets of windows in several London synagogues, including Gt Portland Street, St John's Wood, St Albans, Walm Lane (now installed at Brondesbury Park Synagogue and elsewhere), and the Hechal Shlomo centre in Jerusalem. David Hillman was also active in the Association of German Refugees and, after the Second World War, taught art for years at the Maccabi Association.

Family

In 1926, he married Annie Rabinowitz, also descended from a long line of rabbis. She was a general practitioner. David and Annie had three sons:

Ellis Hillman Ellis Simon Hillman (17 November 1928 – 21 January 1996) was a British Labour politician, local councillor, Mayor of the London Borough of Barnet (1994–95) and polytechnic history lecturer. Hillman was born into a political family, related bo ...

Harold Hillman Harold Hillman (16 August 1930 – 5 August 2016) was a British scientist and expert in the neurobiology of execution methods. He was born in London.Richard StevensonGood Scientists, Bad Science? Clinging To A 'Dubious' Position Can Destroy A Care ...

and

Mayer Hillman Mayer Hillman (born 1931) is a British architect and town planner, and Senior Fellow Emeritus since 1992 at the Policy Studies Institute, University of Westminster where he worked for at least thirty years. Early life Mayer Hillman was born in ...

. Hillman's only sibling, Sarah, married Isaac Herzog, the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of the State of Israel and father of

Chaim Herzog Major-General Chaim Herzog ( he, חיים הרצוג; 17 September 1918 – 17 April 1997) was an Irish-born Israeli politician, general, lawyer and author who served as the sixth President of Israel between 1983 and 1993. Born in Belfast and ...

Death

Hillman died on 14 May 1974.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:hillman, David 1893 births 1974 deaths 20th-century British male artists 20th-century British rabbis 20th-century Lithuanian Jews 20th-century Lithuanian male artists Alumni of the Glasgow School of Art Alumni of the Royal Academy Schools Artists from Glasgow Jewish painters Lithuanian emigrants to the United Kingdom Stained glass artists and manufacturers