On February 9, 1942, France's luxury ship the 'SS Normandie', one of the most magnificent vessels of its day, sank in New York City's Pier 88, where it was interned by the United States to prevent it from falling into Germany's hands after France's surrender to the Nazis in 1940. The sinking, although proved to be the result of an accidental fire, incited rumors of sabotage which captivated the nation—the Pearl Harbor attack had been only a few months earlier. The FBI, Navy, Senate, New York City Fire Department, and Manhattan District Attorney all launched their own separate investigations into the catastrophe.
Born in Poland, Donald Vogel (1902-1986) immigrated to the United States with his family in 1910, settling in New York City. He studied art at Parson’s School of Design and went on to receive Bachelor of Sciences and Master of Fine Art degrees from Columbia University. Following his education, he taught art at the renowned High School of Art and Design in New York.
Vogel exhibited at many prestigious public institutions including the Library of Congress, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Artists for Victory), Society of Independent Artists, Kennedy Galleries, International Print Society, Society of American Etchers, National Academy of Design, Seattle Art Museum, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Brooklyn Museum, American Federation of Arts (a year-long exhibition circulating throughout the United States), National Academy of Design, and the Royal Society of Painters, Etchers and Engravers (London).
A contributor to Print Collector’s Quarterly, La Revue Moderne, and other journals, Vogel received awards for his graphic work from the Munson Williams Proctor Institute (1943), the Northwest Printmakers (1943, 1946), and the Library of Congress (1950), and was published in Albert Reese’s American Prize Prints of the 20th Century. His work is represented in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the United States Library of Congress.