Bidspirit auction | Arie Berkowitz

Arie Berkowitz - Like a palm tree. 50 cm | Oil on canvas stretched on wood | Signed on the back The work is round. Arie Berkowitz is an artist, curator and a central and well-known figure in the world of contemporary Israeli art. He studied at Tel Aviv University and over the years has presented dozens of exhibitions in Israel and abroad, alongside extensive activity as a curator, as director of the Tel Aviv Artists' House and as someone who has contributed greatly to the advancement of artistic discourse in Israel. One of the most striking characteristics of his career is the fact that he was not only an active painter, but also a figure who influenced generations of artists and the local art scene. As part of his activity, he was identified with the Tel Aviv Artists' House and served as artistic director and chief curator, promoting young artists alongside veteran artists. His artistic language ranges from abstract painting to graphic signs, implied landscapes and visual memory. Many of his works do not tell a story directly, but rather create a sense of place, time or memory. In his works Palm trees, moons, splashes of color, signs and lines of an almost calligraphic nature sometimes appear, combining influences of surrealism alongside the tradition of Israeli abstraction. In his work, the landscape is not depicted realistically but is reduced to hints and signs. Even in this work, in which the palm trees appear alongside the blue strokes of color, it seems that the palm trees are not the main subject but a symbol or memory of a place, which resonates in the artist's inner landscape. In the Israeli art market, Aryeh Berkowitz is considered a valued and respected artist, especially among contemporary art collectors and professionals in the field. For decades, he was one of the influential figures behind the scenes of the local art world. Beyond his work, anyone who has met Berkowitz knows a pleasant person, connected to reality, human and generous in spirit. Perhaps these qualities are also part of what makes him such a significant Israeli artist.