In the course of human events: Sam Fink's Declaration

July 6, 2017 12:53 PM

When Sam Fink was a kid, he didn't understand how to read the Declaration of Independence. "I tried to read [the Declaration]...It was difficult, I couldn't read the words. Too tiny. And the script is small and I lost my way. The library came to my rescue....I went to the library and asked the librarian to help me find a copy that I could read. And she did." As an adult, and an accomplished calligrapher and illustrator, he decided to create his own phrase-by-phrase picture book of the document so that children could read it for themselves. The result: The Words That Made America: Understanding the Declaration of Independence. He discusses its genesis in this delightful 2002 talk at the Brooklyn Public Library. (Transcript, but Fink is great to hear.)

He also created illustrated versions of the Constitution of the United States of America (brief interview with NBC), the Gettysburg Address, and the Book of Exodus.

From a 2007 interview with Fink:

Miner: By my count, you were born in 1916, about fifty years after the end of civil war, and fifty years before the Vietnam War began. You were in your twenties during World War II. I believe you’ve lived in all or part of ten decades and through the administration of sixteen American presidents, not one of them as great as Lincoln. I’m sure that there will be some students interested in your advice to them about either art or Americanism?

Fink: We take for granted our country. In my history, I had two sets of grandparents. One from Russia. One from Poland. They escaped oppression. They came here penniless in the mid-1880s. No money. Nothing. Each found a home. They raised six children in one family. Seven in another. My parents were born in America, and I went to school here. I had one grandmother who was illiterate. I have a son now who has a PhD in Jewish history. I have cousins who built businesses. I thought, “It could only happen here.” We have had ups and downs. Weak presidents, assassinated presidents, presidents who were shot at and missed. We’re a young country and still growing. I came in today on the subway from Queens. I came early enough to see people going to work. Every denomination. There were Koreans, Japanese, Italians, Greeks. All kinds. They’re still flocking here. This is the place. Never take it for granted. There will never be another Lincoln, but there will be a guy who will come out of the woodwork somewhere who has courage, and he will be able to spread the word. These things are right here. Right in front of us.

We the People gallery and interview with Fink.

Sam Fink, calligrapher of liberty, May 27, 1916—November 1, 2011.

posted by MonkeyToes (2 comments total)

> Fink is great to hear.

He sure is! "I'll stand up front here, and tell ya about my life..." Great communicator, with a great accent. Thanks for the post.
posted by languagehat at 2:13 PM on July 6, 2017

Thanks, languagehat--I was really struck by Fink's humanity, his love of country, his enjoyment of his work, and his solution to the problem of not understanding something. And the work itself is gorgeous. I've been reading Fink's Declaration with my kids and it has been the most amazing thing to see them absorb the words but really get them when we spend time talking about each illustration. What a gem Fink was!
posted by MonkeyToes at 7:55 AM on July 7, 2017 [1 favorite]