Nachum Gutman (as he himself signed; alternate
romanisation
Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...
: Nahum Gutman; he, נחום גוטמן: October 5, 1898 – November 28, 1980) was a Moldovan-born Israeli
painter
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
,
sculptor
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
, and author.
Biography
Nachum Gutman was born in
Teleneşti,
Bessarabia Governorate
The Bessarabia Governorate (, ) was a part of the Russian Empire from 1812 to 1917. Initially known as Bessarabia Oblast (Бессарабская область, ''Bessarabskaya oblast'') as well as, following 1871, a governorate, it included ...
, then a part of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
(now in the
Republic of Moldova
A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
). He was the fourth child of Sim
a Alter and Rivka Gutman. His father was a Hebrew writer and educator who wrote under the pen name
S. Ben Zion. In 1903, the family moved to
Odessa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...
, and two years later, to
Ottoman Palestine
Ottoman Syria ( ar, سوريا العثمانية) refers to divisions of the Ottoman Empire within the region of Syria, usually defined as being east of the Mediterranean Sea, west of the Euphrates River, north of the Arabian Desert and south ...
. In 1908, Gutman attended the
Herzliya Gymnasium
The Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium ( he, הַגִּימְנַסְיָה הָעִבְרִית הֶרְצְלִיָּה, ''HaGymnasia HaIvrit Herzliya'', Also known as ''Gymnasia Herzliya''), originally known as HaGymnasia HaIvrit (lit. Hebrew High Scho ...
in what would later become
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
. In 1912, he studied at the
Bezalel School
The Bezalel school was an art movement in Palestine in the late Ottoman and British Mandate periods. Named for the Bezalel Art School, predecessor of the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, it has been described as "a fusion of oriental art an ...
in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. In 1920–26, he studied art in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
, Berlin and Paris.
Gutman was married to Dora, with whom he had a son. After Gutman's death in 1980, Dora asked two Tel Aviv gallery owners, Meir Stern of Stern Gallery and Miriam Tawin of
Shulamit Gallery, to appraise the value all of the works left in his estate.
Artistic career
Gutman helped pioneer a distinctively Israeli style, moving away from the European influences of his teachers. He worked in many different media:
oils
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
,
watercolours
Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...
,
gouache
Gouache (; ), body color, or opaque watercolor is a water-medium paint consisting of natural pigment, water, a binding agent (usually gum arabic or dextrin), and sometimes additional inert material. Gouache is designed to be opaque. Gouache h ...
and
pen and ink
A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity whic ...
.
His sculptures and brightly colored mosaics can be seen in public places around Tel Aviv. Indoor murals depicting the history of
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
can be seen in the western wing of the Shalom Tower and the Chief Rabbinate building.
A mosaic fountain with scenes from the early days of Tel Aviv and biblical stories connected to Jaffa (inscribed with 3 Bible verses: Jeremiah 31:4, 2 Chronicles 2:16, Jonah 1:3), stood for 32 years at the end of
Bialik Street, opposite the old
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
municipality building. In 2012 this mosaic fountain was reinstalled at the southern end of Rothschild Boulevard.
Gutman's artistic style was eclectic, ranging from figurative to abstract. Gutman was also a well-known writer and illustrator of children's books.
Awards and recognition
Gutman received many art and literary prizes:
* 1938:
Dizengoff Prize
The Dizengoff Prize for Painting and Sculpture is awarded annually by the Tel Aviv-Yafo
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb ...
for painting ''(also in 1956)''
* 1946:
Lamdan Prize for children's literature
* 1955: Sicily Award for watercolor painting at the São Paulo Biennale
* 1956: Dizengoff Prize for painting ''(also in 1938)''
[
* 1962: Hans Christian Andersen Literary Prize on behalf of Unesco for his book "Path of Orange Peels"
* 1964: Yatziv Prize
* 1969: Fichman Prize for Literature and Art
* 1974: Honorary Doctor of Philosophy from ]Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
* 1976: Honorary Citizen of Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
* 1978: Israel Prize
The Israel Prize ( he, פרס ישראל; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor.
History
The Israel Prize is awarded annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state cer ...
, for children's literature
Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader.
Children's ...
The Nachum Gutman Museum, showcasing the artist's work, was established in the Neve Tzedek
Neve Tzedek ( he, נְוֵה צֶדֶק, נווה צדק, ''lit.'' Abode of Justice) is a neighborhood located in southwestern Tel Aviv, Israel. It was the first Judaism, Jewish neighborhood to be built outside the old city of the ancient port of ...
neighborhood of Tel Aviv.
Outdoor and public art
* 1961 A mosaic wall at the Chief Rabbinate building, Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
* 1966 A mosaic wall in memory of the Herzliya high school at Migdal Shalom (Shalom Tower), Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
* 1976 History of Jaffa and Tel Aviv, mosaic-decorated fountain, initially Bialik Square, now southern end of Rothschild Boulevard Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
Published works
*''Path of the Orange Peels: Adventures in the Early Days of Tel Aviv'' (English translation: Nelly Segal) Dodd, Mead & Company, 1979
*"Seven Mills and Another Station" (Sheva T'khanot ve'od Takhana), Yavneh 1956
*"In the Land of Lobengulu King of Zulu", Massadah 1940
See also
*List of Israel Prize recipients
This is a complete list of recipients of the Israel Prize from the inception of the Prize in 1953 through to 2022.
List
For each year, the recipients are, in most instances, listed in the order in which they appear on the official Israel Prize ...
References
External links
*
*
*
The Nachum Gutman Museum
(in Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
and English)
Nachum Gutman – Illustrates stories of the Bible Exhibition
The Mosaics of Nachum Gutman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gutman, Nachum
1898 births
1980 deaths
People from Telenești District
Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the Ottoman Empire
Israeli Jews
Jewish painters
Israel Prize in children's literature recipients
20th-century Israeli painters
Burials at Trumpeldor Cemetery
Mosaic artists