Reuven Rubin ( he, ראובן רובין; November 13, 1893 – October 13, 1974) was a Romanian-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 ...

and Israel's first ambassador to Romania.

Biography

Rubin Zelicovici (later Reuven Rubin) was born in Galaţi to a poor Romanian Jewish

Hasidic Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism ( Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of conte ...

family. He was the eighth of 13 children. In 1912, he left for Ottoman-ruled Palestine to study art at

Bezalel Academy of Art and Design Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design ( he, בצלאל, אקדמיה לאמנות ועיצוב) is a public college of design and art located in Jerusalem. Established in 1906 by Jewish painter and sculptor Boris Schatz, Bezalel is Israel's oldes ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. Finding himself at odds with the artistic views of the Academy's teachers, he left for

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, in 1913 to pursue his studies at the

École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts The Beaux-Arts de Paris is a French '' grande école'' whose primary mission is to provide high-level arts education and training. This is classical and historical School of Fine Arts in France. The art school, which is part of the Paris Scien ...

. At the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, he returned to Romania to the city of Falticeni, where he spent the war years. In 1921, he traveled to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

with his friend and fellow artist, Arthur Kolnik, with whom he had shared a studio in

Cernăuţi Chernivtsi ( uk, Чернівці́}, ; ro, Cernăuți, ; see also other names) is a city in the historical region of Bukovina, which is now divided along the borders of Romania and Ukraine, including this city, which is situated on the up ...

. In

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, the two met artist

Alfred Stieglitz Alfred Stieglitz (January 1, 1864 – July 13, 1946) was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. In addition to his photography, Stieglitz was kno ...

, who was instrumental in organizing their first American show at the Anderson Gallery. Following the exhibition, in 1922, they both returned to Europe. In 1923, Rubin emigrated to

Mandate Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 i ...

. Rubin met his wife, Esther, in 1928, aboard a passenger ship to Palestine on his return from a show in

. She was a

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

girl who had won a trip to Palestine in a

Young Judea Young Judaea is a peer-led Zionist youth movement that runs programs throughout the United States for Jewish youth in grades 2–12. In Hebrew, Young Judaea is called ''Yehuda Hatzair'' (יהודה הצעיר) or is sometimes referred to as ''Has ...

competition.

Artistic career

The history of Israeli art began at a very specific moment in the history of international art, at a time of Cezannian rebellion against the conventions of the past, a time typified by rapid stylistic changes. Thus Jewish national art had no fixed history, no canon to obey. Rubin began his career at a fortunate time. The painters who depicted the country’s landscapes in the 1920s rebelled against Bezalel. They sought current styles in Europe that would help portray their own country’s landscape, in keeping with the spirit of the time. Rubin’s Cezannesque landscapes from the 1920sWebberley, Helen “Landscape Painting in Palestine: Not Just Cezanne with Olive Trees”, 20th Annual Conference, ACJC, Monash University, Feb 2008 were defined by both a modern and a naive style, portraying the landscape and inhabitants of Israel in a sensitive fashion. His landscape paintings in particular paid special detail to a spiritual, translucent light. In Palestine, he became one of the founders of the new '' Eretz-Yisrael style''. Recurring themes in his work were the biblical landscape, folklore and people, including Yemenite, Hasidic Jews and

Arabs The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

. Many of his paintings are sun-bathed depictions of Jerusalem and the

Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Gali ...

. Rubin might have been influenced by the work of

Henri Rousseau Henri Julien Félix Rousseau (; 21 May 1844 – 2 September 1910)
at the Eastern nuances, as well as with the neo-

Byzantine art Byzantine art comprises the body of Christian Greek artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire, as well as the nations and states that inherited culturally from the empire. Though the empire itself emerged from the decline of Rome and lasted u ...

to which Rubin had been exposed in his native Romania. In accordance with his integrative style, he signed his works with his first name 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 his surname in Roman letters. In 1924, he was the first artist to hold a solo exhibition at the

Tower of David The Tower of David ( he, מגדל דוד, Migdál Davíd), also known as the Citadel ( ar, القلعة, al-Qala'a), is an ancient citadel located near the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem. The citadel that stands today dates ...

, in

(later exhibited in

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 ...

Gymnasia Herzliya 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 ...

). That year he was elected chairman of the Association of Painters and Sculptors of Palestine. From the 1930s onwards, Rubin designed backdrops for Habima Theater, the Ohel Theater and other theaters. His autobiography, published in 1969, is titled ''My Life - My Art''. He died in Tel Aviv in October 1974, after having bequeathed his home on 14 Bialik Street and a core collection of his paintings to the city of Tel Aviv. The Rubin Museum opened in 1983. The director and curator of the museum is his daughter-in-law, Carmela Rubin. Rubin's paintings are now increasingly sought after. At a

Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...

auction in

in 2007, his work accounted for six of the ten top lots.

Diplomatic career

In 1948, he became the first official Israeli diplomatic envoy (minister) to Romania. He served in this position until 1950.

Gallery

File:Reuven Rubin-The Beginnings of Tel-Aviv.jpg, ''The Beginnings of Tel-Aviv'', oil painting, 1912 File:'Galilean Hills', oil on canvas painting by Reuven Rubin.jpg, ''Galilean Hills'', oil on canvas

Education

* 1912

Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design ( he, בצלאל, אקדמיה לאמנות ועיצוב) is a public college of design and art located in Jerusalem. Established in 1906 by Jewish painter and sculptor Boris Schatz, Bezalel is Israel's oldes ...

* 1913-14

École des Beaux Arts École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

, Paris and

Académie Colarossi The Académie Colarossi (1870–1930) was an art school in Paris founded in 1870 by the Italian model and sculptor Filippo Colarossi. It was originally located on the Île de la Cité, and it moved in 1879 to 10 rue de la Grande-Chaumière in the ...

, Paris

Awards and commemoration

* 1926 Awarded the Lord Plumer Prize * 1945 Receives Honorary Doctorate of Hebrew Letters, Jewish Institute of Religion, New York * 1964, Rubin received an "honorary award" of the

Dizengoff Prize The Dizengoff Prize for Painting and Sculpture is awarded annually by the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality since 1937. Recipients The following is a table of Dizengoff Prize laureates in their respective art form: References {{reflist Israeli ...

for Painting. * 1971 Awarded the "Artist of the year", University of Judaism, Los Angeles * 1973, he was awarded the

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 painting. Studio Reuven rubin 2

References

Bibliography

* Dalia Manor, "The Dancing Jew and Other Characters: Art in the Jewish Settlement of Palestine during the 1920s"
Journal of Modern Jewish Studies
1(1), 2002, pp. 73–89. * Dalia Manor, "Imagined Homeland: Landscape Painting in Palestine in the 1920s"
Nations and Nationalism
9 (4), 2003, pp. 533–554. * Dalia Manor, '
Art in Zion: The Genesis of Modern National Art in Jewish Palestine
', London & New York, Routledge, 2005, esp. chapters 6, 7. * Claus Stephani: ''Das Bild des Juden in der modernen Malerei.'' Eine Einführung. / Imaginea evreului în pictura modernă. Studiu introductiv. (Zweisprachige Ausgabe, deutsch-rumänisch. Ediţie bilingvă, româno-germană.) Editura Hasefer: Bucharest, 2005.

External links

* * *
Rubin Museum

Reuven Rubin Catalogue Raisonne Project

by Carmela Rubin

from the Jewish Virtual Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubin, Reuven 1893 births 1974 deaths People from Galați Romanian Jews Israeli people of Romanian-Jewish descent Romanian emigrants to Israel Ashkenazi Jews in Ottoman Palestine Ashkenazi Jews in Mandatory Palestine Israeli male painters Israeli scenic designers Israeli diplomats Israeli Ashkenazi Jews Romanian scenic designers Jewish painters Israel Prize in painting recipients 20th-century Israeli male artists 20th-century Israeli painters Académie Colarossi alumni Ambassadors of Israel to Romania Burials at Trumpeldor Cemetery