To label this area as “from Bezalel to Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design” is to trace the development of Jewish ritual art and sacred spaces from the biblical designated artist Bezalel (Exodus 31:1-6, 36 to 39) to the founding of the Bezalel Academy in 1906.
Encouraging the Study of Art
Organized art activity in the country began in 1906, the year Professor Boris Schatz (1867-1932) arrived from Bulgaria and founded the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Crafts in Jerusalem, according to a plan approved at the 1905 Zionist Congress to encourage talented young Jews to study art in the Land of Israel. By 1910, the school had 32 different departments, a student body of 500, and a ready market for its works throughout the Jewish world.
In addition to painters and sculptors, the country’s artistic life comprises a host of talented craftspeople (ceramicists, silver and goldsmiths, weavers, calligraphers, glass blowers, etc.), many of whom specialize in modern interpretations of traditional Jewish ceremonial objects.
Art is used to transform time and space, celebrating Jewish events..