The Bessarabian-born painter Nahum Gutman moved to Tel Aviv when he was seven. He studied at the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts and, in the 1920s, in Vienna, Berlin, and Paris. He returned to Mandate Palestine in 1926. His oils and watercolors often feature massive, highly stylized individuals. Though influenced by French expressionism, he saw himself as a rebel, turning his back on European traditions of painting and championing a style in harmony with the light and landscapes of Palestine.
This intricately decorated ketubah (marriage contract) marks the marriage of Gabriel ben Hezekiah Amron to Simḥa bat Shabbetai mi-Segni. It is richly decorated with biblical miniatures, including one…
Portrait of Solomon Ayllon, Chief Rabbi of the Sephardic Congregations in London and Amsterdam from 1700 to 1728. This portrait was printed at the time of his death to commemorate him.
What is the place of the idolatry that is reflected in the Bible?
This idolatry is not a representation perverted for the sake of polemic; nor is it an artificial…