Art in Zion: The Genesis of Modern National Art in Jewish Palestine PDF
Preview Art in Zion: The Genesis of Modern National Art in Jewish Palestine
Art in Zion Art in Zion examines the complex relationship between art and national ideology, through the specific case of the artistic activity in Jewish Palestine during the first decades of the twentieth century and set against the backdrop of the Zionist settlement and the process of nation-building. Dalia Manor focuses on two phases of this early development: on works made by the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts, and paintings by a group in the 1920s known as the Modernists, in particular by Reuven Rubin. Beyond the differences between these two groups, the book examines their shared aspiration to create a genuine national art that would reflect the renewed contact of the Jews with the Land of Israel by drawing on the country itself—its landscapes and population. This book considers to what extent this search for an authentic local, artistic expression relies on ideas, themes and styles borrowed from European culture; and the seeming discrepancy between the artists’ personal commitment to the Zionist ideology and the absence of expected imagery relating to this ideology in their art. Whether turning to traditional Jewish symbols and biblical themes, or adopting a certain contemporary French ‘look’, both groups created an imagined and idealised view of the country and its people—Jews and Arabs—as an oriental Arcadia of the pre-Zionist, pre-modern era. This book analyses the ideological and social climate, and the critical response to this art, elucidating the meaning and function of such an idealised picture. Art in Zion offers a new perspective on the scholarship of Zionism and the Jewish settlement in Palestine, in pre-state Israel. As one of the few academic studies on Israel’s visual arts, and a unique study of the link between art and national ideology, it is a significant addition to any study of modern Jewish art and culture. The book also sheds light on a little-explored aspect of cultural nationalism. Dr Dalia Manor is an art historian and critic with a special interest in modern art and national identity. She has published numerous articles, catalogues and reviews on art in Israel. She is a Senior Research Associate in the Department of Near and Middle East at SOAS, University of London, where she has lectured for many years. RoutledgeCurzon Jewish Studies Series Series Editor: Oliver Leaman University of Kentucky Studies which are interpreted to cover the disciplines of history, sociology, anthropology, culture, politics, philosophy, theology and religion as they relate to Jewish affairs. The remit includes texts which have as their primary focus issues, ideas, personalities and events of relevance to Jews, Jewish life and the concepts which have characterised Jewish culture both in the past and today. The series is interested in receiving appropriate scripts or proposals. Medieval Jewish Philosophy An Introduction Dan Cohn-Sherbok Facing the Other The Ethics of Emmanuel Levinas Edited by Seán Hand Moses Maimonides Oliver Leaman A User’s Guide to Franz Rosenzweig’s Star of Redemption Norbert M.Samuelson On Liberty Jewish Philosophical Perspectives Edited by Daniel H.Frank Referring to God Jewish and Christian Philosophical and Theological Perspectives Edited by Paul Helm Judaism, Philosophy, Culture Selected Studies by E.I.J.Rosenthal Erwin Rosenthal Philosophy of the Talmud Hyam Maccoby From Synagogue to Church: The Traditional Design Its Beginning, its Definition, its End John Wilkinson Hidden Philosophy of Hannah Arendt Margaret Betz Hull Deconstructing the Bible Abraham ibn Ezra’s Introduction to the Torah Irene Lancaster Image of the Black in Jewish Culture A History of the Other Abraham Melamed From Falashas to Ethiopian Jews Daniel Summerfield Philosophy in a Time of Crisis Don Isaac Abravanel: Defender of the Faith Seymour Feldman Jews, Muslims and Mass Media Mediating the ‘Other’ Edited by Tudor Parfitt with Yulia Egorova Jews of Ethiopia The Birth of an Elite Edited by Emanuela Trevisan Semi and Tudor Parfitt Art in Zion The Genesis of Modern National Art in Jewish Palestine Dalia Manor Hebrew Language and Jewish Thought David Patterson Art in Zion The Genesis of Modern National Art in Jewish Palestine Dalia Manor LONDON AND NEW YORK First published 2005 by RoutledgeCurzon 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN in association with The European Jewish Publication Society, PO Box 19948, London N3 3ZJ Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by RoutledgeCurzon 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 RoutledgeCurzon is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. “ To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/.” © 2005 Dalia Manor All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. The European Jewish publication Society is a registered charity which gives grants to assist in the publication and distribution of books relevant to Jewish literature, history, religion, philosophy, politics and culture. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog for this book has been requested ISBN 0-203-61142-X Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-34666-1 (Adobe e-reader Format) ISBN 0-415-31836-X (Print Edition) To Ram Contents List of illustrations x Note on terms, translation and transliteration xvii List of abbreviations xviii Acknowledgements xix Introduction 1 8 PART I Bezalel Institute and the myth of origin of Israeli art 1 Ideological background 10 2 Boris Schatz, founder of Bezalel 18 3 The Bezalel Institute 26 4 The iconography of Bezalel art 40 5 A ‘Hebrew style’: the early quest for local Jewish art 69 73 PART II Art for the nation: the work of Reuven Rubin 6 Beginnings in Romania 75 7 Rubin in Palestine 89 107 PART III The Modernists of the 1920s 8 A view from afar: landscapes of the homeland 109 9 Orientalism, Primitivism and folklore: looking at the country’s ‘types’ 128 10 Art and ideas: artists, critics and the role of art 166 Conclusion 183 Appendix A 188 Appendix B 190 Notes 191 Bibliography 236 Index 250
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