Boris Schatz, 1866-1932

Born into a religious family in Lithuania, Schatz pursued a career as an artist. In 1903 he met Theodor Herzl and became a staunch Zionist. He received support from the Seventh Zionist Congress in 1905 to start a Jewish art school, and the next year he opened the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts in Jerusalem. Bezalel exhibitions in Europe and the United States were the first foreign art shows from the Land of Israel.

Photo: Public domain