Choosing 75 works of art to commemorate Israel’s 75th anniversary is daunting; Israel has a robust artistic scene that started well before the state’s founding. Early Zionists such as Martin Buber considered art a key element in the Jewish people’s rehabilitation. “A nation without art is not a nation,” he declared. As is evident in this compilation, Israel has compensated for the historic dearth of a Jewish artistic tradition resulting from both Second Commandment prohibitions and historical circumstance. Indeed, since the founding of the Bezalel Art Academy in Jerusalem in 1906, Israel’s art scene has flourished. This collection, while not a comprehensive survey, comprises a wide range of media and artists, including painting, sculpture and architecture, and reflects the vibrancy and complexity of life in Israel, as well as the rich sources from Jewish and Israeli history that inspired these works. My hope is that the compilation will be at once stimulating and uplifting.

— Dr. Susan Nashman Fraiman

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Click on any image below for details from Dr. Fraiman about the work, its significance and its selection for this list.

1896 — Mattiyahu sculpture by Boris Schatz. (image courtesy of Alec Mishory and the Bezalel Narkiss Index of Jewish Art, Center for Jewish Art, Hebrew University of Jerusalem)
1916-1925 — The Chair of Elijah by Ze’ev Raban, built at Bezalel School. (image by David Harris, copyright the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; item purchased through the gift of Yossi Benyaminoff, New York, to the American Friends of the Israel Museum)
1930 (circa) — Self-Portrait by Boris Schatz. (image courtesy of the Schatz House, Jerusalem)
1906-194 — Triple Arch Bezalel Rug: Abraham’s Tamarisk, Mount Sinai and Herzl’s Cypress. (image courtesy of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Recanati Fund for Acquisition of Israeli Art)
1926 (circa) — Standing Hanukkah Lamp by Ze’ev Raban and Yehiya Yemini. (image courtesy of the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh)
1928-1934 — The Roaring Lion by Abraham Melnikoff. (image by Dr. Avishai Teicher, PikiWiki, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons)
1923 — Triptych: First Fruits by Reuven Rubin. (image copyright the Rubin Museum, Tel Aviv)
1929 — Les Fiancées by Reuven Rubin. (image copyright the Rubin Museum, Tel Aviv)
1929-1937 — Monument to Work and Defense by Batia Lishansky. (image by Y.S., public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
1939 — Nimrod by Yitzhak Danziger. (image copyright the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; gift of Dr. David H. Orgler, Zurich and Jerusalem)
1947 — Sabbath on the Kibbutz by Yohanan Simon. (Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Municipality of Tel Aviv Award 1947; image copyright Tel Aviv Museum of Art)
1938-1941 — Alexander Zaid by David Polus. (image by De Hanay, own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1948 — In the Cyprus Deportation by various artists. (Image from the Collection of the Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod, Israel)
1947 — Children of the Diaspora by Zeev Ben-Zvi. (image by Dr. Avishai Teicher, PikiWiki Israel, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons)
1948 — Portrait of the Artist’s Son, Aharon-Jimmy by Menachem Shemi. (Image from the Collection of the Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod, Israel)
1948 — Nocturne (Death of a Warrior) by Marcel Janco. (part of a private collection; image used with permission of Janco’s descendants)
1948-1949 — Torah case by Ludwig Yehuda Wolpert. (image courtesy of the Truman Library)
1949 — The Knesset Moves to Jerusalem by Arieh Navon. (image courtesy of David Navon and the Israel Cartoon Museum)
1949-1950 — First Seder in Jerusalem by Reuven Rubin. (image copyright the Rubin Museum, Tel Aviv)
1951 — Life on Kibbutz (Yehiam) by Joseph Zaritsky. (Yosef Zaritsky, YEHIAM, 1951, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, purchased through the contribution of Joseph and Rebeca Meyerhoff; image copyright Tel Aviv Museum of Art)
1952 — Mother and Child — Memorial to Chana Tuchman Adlerstein by Chana Orloff. (image by Dr. Avishai Teicher, PikiWiki Israel, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons)
1953 — Monument to the Defenders of Negba by Nathan Rapoport. (image by Bukvoed, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1953 — In an Immigrants’ Transit Camp by Ruth Schloss. (image from the Collection of the Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod, Israel)
1957 — In the Courtyard of the Third Temple by Naftali Bezem. (Naftali Bezem, In the Courtyard of the Third Temple, 1957, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Dizengoff Prize, 1957; image copyright Tel Aviv Museum of Art)
1958 — Might by Yosef Zaritsky. (image by Yair Talmor, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
1960 — Fountain by Kosso Elul. (image by Amitay Katz, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
1961 — Ohel Yizkor, Yad Vashem’s Hall of Remembrance, designed by Arieh Elhanani, Arieh Sharon and Benjamin Idelson. (image by Yossi Ben-David, Yad Vashem)
1964 — Agripas Street by Arie Aroch. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Jonathan Aroch, gift of Walter and Marianne Griessmann, London, to the Israel Museum and Tel Aviv Museum of Art)
1966 — Wall to the Glory of Jerusalem by Moshe Castel. (image by Mark Neyman, Israeli Government Press Office, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1966 — Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem by Dani Karavan. (image by Yair Talmor, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
1966 — Flying Spice Box by Yossl Bergner. (image from the Collection of the Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod, Israel)
1966 — Peace Monument by Yigal Tumarkin. (image by Gveret Tered, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1966 — The Story of Tel Aviv by Nahum Gutman. (image by Itzuvit, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1967 — At the Gates of Jerusalem triptych of (from right) Rock, Ladders and Sign by Mordechai Ardon. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Ardon estate, gift of the artist in honor of Israel’s 20th anniversary and the unification of Jerusalem)
1968 — Monument to the Negev Brigade by Dani Karavan. (Image by Nir Tober, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1969 — Untitled collage by Raffi Lavie. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Lavie’s estate, gift of Shaya Yariv, Gordon Gallery, Tel Aviv)
1970 — From Holocaust to Revival by Naftali Bezem. (image copyright Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem; collection of the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem, gift of Shmuel Hirurg and his family in memory of Pinchas and Hanna Gerszowski)
1971 — Ingathering of the Exiles by Abraham Ofek. (image by Heritage Conservation Jerusalem via Pikiwiki Israel, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons)
1974 — Holocaust and Revival by Igael Tumarkin. (image by Lishay Shechter, public domain, PikiWiki Israel, via Wikimedia Commons)
1975 — Druksland by Michael Druks. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Druks’ estate, the Vera and Arturo Schwarz Collection of Israeli Art, Israel Museum, Jerusalem)
1983 — Holidays Set by Zelig Segal. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Segal’s estate, purchased by Ari Ackerman Fund)
1984 — Mita Meshuna (the Artist’s Monogram) by Igael Tumarkin. (Image by David Harris, copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Tumarkin’s estate, purchased by Recanati Fund for the Acquisition of Israeli Art)
1985 — The Sacrifice of Isaac by Menashe Kadishman. (image copyright Tel Aviv Museum of Art; gift of Rachel and Dov Gottesman)
1988 — Cactus by Assem Abu Shakra. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright Abu Shakra’s estate, purchased by the Modern Art Acquisition Fund)
1989 — Herzl by Uri Lifschitz. (image by Dr. Avishai Teicher, own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
1995-1996 — El Maleh Rachamim by Moshe Gershuni. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; work copyright the artist’s estate)
1997 — Bereshit by Belu Simion Fainaru. (image courtesy of the artist)
1999 — Untitled by Adi Nes. (copyright the artist, gift of Gary B. Sokol, San Francisco)
1999 — The Book of Women by Nechama Golan. (image courtesy of the artist)
2002 — Jericho First by Sharif Waked. (image copyright Israel Museum, Jerusalem; copyright the artist, purchased by ARTVISION Acquisitions Committee, Israel)
2002 — Tomorrow’s Jerusalem — Revised and Revisited by Michel Kichka. (image courtesy of the artist)
2003 — Tree of the Field by Zadok Ben-David. (image copyright Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem; collection of the Yad Vashem Art Museum, Jerusalem, through a gift of the Karten family in memory of parents Julia and Isidore Karten)
2003 — Tilted Tree by Ran Morin. (image by Avi Deror, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
2003 — Bayit by Samuel Bak. (image courtesy of Pucker Gallery)
2005 — Today Gush Katif, Tomorrow Jaffa by Avner Bar Hama. (image courtesy of the artist)
2005 — Remembrance 2 by Ruth Kestenbaum Ben-Dov. (image by Yona Schley; work copyright the artist)
2005 — Holocaust History Museum, Yad Vashem, by Safdie Architects. (image by Martin Sykes-Haas, Yad Vashem)
2005-2007 — Tel Kakun by Israel Hershberg. (image courtesy of Dubi Shiff Art Collection)
2008 — The Square in Kfar Yehoshua by Elie Shamir. (image courtesy of the artist; painting from a private collection)
2009-2010 — Nahalal by Gal Weinstein. (image courtesy of the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; purchased by ARTVISION Acquisitions Committee, Israel)
2013 — Hilula by Shai Azoulay. (image courtesy of the artist)
2013 — A Delicate Balance by Andi Arnovitz. (image courtesy of the artist)
2014 — Operation Protective Edge and I by Sigal Maor. (image courtesy of the artist; collection of the artist)
2014 — Return in Peace by Ken Goldman. (image courtesy of the artist; collection of the artist)
2015 — One Day Passes and Another Day Comes by Peter Jacob Maltz. (Image copyright the Israel Museum, Jerusalem)
2015 — Kav 70 by Dov Abramson. (image courtesy of the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, Jerusalem)
2016 — New Victims by Zoya Cherkassky. (image courtesy of the artist and Rosenfeld Gallery, Tel Aviv)
2017 — Heichal HaZikaron by Kimmel Eshkolot Architects and Liran Chechik. (image by Nadav Barkai, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
2017 — Samira by Amira Ziyan. (image courtesy of the artist)
2018 — Strangeness by Raida Adon. (image by Tammy Weis, copyright the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; video purchased by the “Here and Now” Contemporary Israeli Art Acquisitions Committee, Israel)
2019 — We Came to Our Land by Jack Jano. (image courtesy of the artist and the Engel Gallery, Jerusalem)
2019 — Atlit by Tigist Yoseph Ron. (image by Elad Sarig, used by permission of the photographer, the artist and the Israel Museum, Jerusalem)
2021 — Rooftop Paintings: Eshchar-Sachnin (Morning); Sachnin-Eshchar (Afternoon) by Ruth Kestenbaum Ben-Dov. (images by Dror Miler; collection of the artist, used by permission)
2022 — Strand by Sigalit Landau. (image copyright by the artists; “Sigalit Landau: The Burning Sea,” October 6, 2022, to June 17, 2023)
2023 — Letters of Light by Micha Ullman. (image courtesy of Albatross Photos)