Biographies of Our Artists

The artists are listed below in alphabetical order by last name. Enjoy!

Ronit Akavia
Ronit Akavia lives in Qadima, Israel – a rural area near Tel-Aviv. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Textile Design at the Shenkar College of Textile Technology and Fashion

Ronit has worked in a variety of media, but when she began to use polyester resin; a translucent multicolor substance, she found a material that permitted her to bring to life many of her design ideas.

The catalog of `Ronit Akavia Designs` has rapidly expanded in recent years, and now it contains many different items: bowls, plates, key-chains, boxes, mobiles, drawer handles, ornaments for children rooms, bathroom accessories, tabletops, lamps etc.

These items, which are hand crafted in an open-air factory, are available throughout Israel and in the USA, Canada, Denmark, Holland, Spain, Germany and other countries.

David Avisar - Painter & Scribe

David grew up in a suburb of Tel Aviv surrounded by fields of orange trees. Tending the fields is one of his great loves.

He served as a paratrooper in the IDF. After his military service, he attended a tour guide school under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism. David spent many years as a tour guide in the Sinai where he led many tours.

The sand-stone mountains and dunes, the green oasis, the star-filled evening sky, the highest red granite peak of Mount Sinai; these marvelous Sinai desert scenes are inspiring in their peaceful beauty and simplicity. These scenes greatly influenced David's artwork.

During his years as a tour guide, he toured many locations throughout the world. Some of the trips he made were yachting cruises.

At age 27, upon the advice of the well-known artist, Moshe Rosentalis, he began studying at the Art Academy in Ramat HaSharon. He continued his studies at the Kefar Art Academy in the Artist Village in Ein Hod where he was strongly influenced by the renowned artist Marcel Yanko.

His works convey both expressionism, with an influence of modern French Art consisting of color and lines, and realism. His themes express feelings of optimism, happiness and light.

In the late 1980's, David returned to his roots and became an observant Chassidic Jew. His paintings have been greatly influenced by his Jewish spirituality. Subjects depicted in his works include Bible Stories, Torah Study, The Redemption, The Sabbath, Prayer and Faith.

He is a member of both the Association of Religious Artists in Israel and the Association of Illustrators.

David currently resides in Beit Shemesh and where he divides his time between family, Torah study and art. He anxiously awaits the spiritual awakening of the Jewish people and their return to the ways of Torah.

His paintings presently appear in galleries and exhibitions in Israel and the United States.

If you would like to visit David's studio or receive a price quote for his original works, please contact us at brenda@jewish-art-and-gifts.com.

Sharon Binder - Calligrapher and Artist

Sharon Binder was born in New York, where she was graduated from Queens College with a B.A. in art. As an undergraduate, she also attended the Teachers’ Institute of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. While still a student, she contributed to the renaissance of the art of illuminated ketubot (marriage contracts), several of which are on display today in Jewish museums and private collections around the world. For the past twenty years she has lived and worked in Jerusalem.

Sharon’s interest in Hebrew letters led to her mastery of calligraphy, which she studied in Toronto, Canada with Alf Ebsen and Nona Brown. Using the letters as her key element, she developed a technique of screen printing and design that combines contemporary graphics with Judaic motifs.

Her unique combination of art and crafts has been applied to the creation of major works for the home, institutions and synagogues. Torah covers, wall hangings, wood carvings, designs in metal, paper and fabric have flowed from her designs. In 1995 she exhibited a hand-illustrated and calligraphed Book of Ruth at the Yeshiva University Museum in New York. Other exhibits of her work and handicrafts have been held in Jerusalem, London, Boston, Philadelphia, and Houston. Specially commissioned pieces have been presented to such dignitaries as the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and the late King Hussein of Jordan.

The sukkah panels that Sharon has designed represent her synthesis of mixed media and Hebrew letters. Representations of the seven species with which the land of Israel is blessed are combined with appropriate Biblical verses to convey the theme and environment of the annual harvest festival. The designs have been reproduced on weatherproof plasticized canvas, and include depictions of the etrog and lulav used on the festival, as well as the traditional Biblical “shepherds” who are invited each evening to enter the sukkah. Sharon has added seven companions to these spiritual guests, in order to represent outstanding Biblical women.

The artist applies her expertise in such diverse media as painting, pen-and-ink, typography and fabric appliqué to a wide range of projects. She is available for consultation on private commissions, by appointment. Please coordinate through Brenda Ganot: brenda@jewish-art-and-gifts.com

D'vora Black

D’vora Black was born in Harare (Zimbabwe) in 1956. From an early age she was inspired by Africa’s natural beauty. She began drawing and painting as a child and won prizes for her art which encouraged her to continue in this field. She studied at Rhodes University in South Africa and graduated with a degree in Fine Art majoring in oil painting in 1979.

D’vora worked as an art teacher for several years in East London before marrying and making Aliya to Israel in 1984.

Over the years D’vora has developed a small art business specializing in original designs often with religious content and with an Israeli flavor. She uses real dried flowers, which she finds in the country-side close to her home, to adorn her pictures. Her pieces often reflect the bright summer light and harmony in nature. D’vora lives in Neveh Daniel with her husband and three children.

Moshe Braun - Artist and Scribe

Combining his love of art with his rich Jewish heritage, Moshe Braun creates paperucts, unique paintings and illuminated manuscripts based on Jewish texts and prayers. His varied works include illuminated ketubot (Jewish marriage documents), Tefillot (prayers) and Brachot (blessings). Moshe takes the beauty and meaningfulness of Judaism and the Land of Israel and gives the viewer a feeling and an appreciation of it. Moshe is also trained as a sofer (Jewish scribe) and writes Kosher scrolls.

Media and technique Using a variety of techniques and media such as pen and ink, watercolor, gouache and paper cutting, he inspires the viewer to embrace and revere Jewish texts and prayers. The intricate papercuts incorporate Jerusalem architecture, both historic and contemporary synagogue architecture, floral and vineyard themes. Often, he creates a piece that is fashioned with both papercut and watercolor. His watercolors are rich colorful scenes from Israel, inspired from classic Jewish sources. Moshe extensively delves into Jewish texts, creating a piece that is rich in both content and style. Pen and ink calligraphy complete the work.

One of Moshe's greatest achievements in the area of sofrut is his illuminated Megillat Esther. A fully functional kosher megillah, it depicts scenes from the Biblical account.

Moshe studied fine art at the University of Michigan, earning a BFA with a concentration in industrial design. He later continued his professional training in Jerusalem, becoming certified as a sofer. The International Society for the Integrity of Torah Scrolls, Tefillin and Mezzuzot, otherwise know as Va'ad Mishmeret Sta'am of Jerusalem, presents the certification.

Moshe has exhibited his work both in the United States and in Israel. His clients include private patrons as well as organizations. Among then are The Bostoner Rebbe Shlita Grand Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Horowitz, David Shapell College of Jewish Studies/Yeshivat Darche Noam, Midreshet Rachel College of Jewish Studies for Women, Mayanot Institute for Jewish Studies, Shalvah/Israel Association to Relieve The Handicapped Child and Family, and Yeshivat Chochmot Shlomo of Jerusalem. Moshe's works are in collections in Jerusalem, London, Manchester, New York, Silver Spring, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Milwaukee and Los Angeles. Moshe has lectured about his art and also about the field of sofrut to schools and groups in various areas including Warsaw, Poland.

Moshe, lives with his wife Marla and their children in Beit Shemesh, Israel.

Esther Cohen - Hand Made Paper

Esther Cohen works with natural fibers using the flora and fauna of Israel. The fibers are prepared using the ancient technique of papermaking and the leaves are hand picked and dried in a special process to ensure the archival quality. Each piece is sealed with varnish, which allows it to be cleaned with a damp rag (not to spray directly on it).

The mirrors are just one example of the myriad of art and craft items that Esther creates. She is available for commissions and can send pictures via e-mail of other site-specific work. She also gives hand papermaking workshops in her studio, which is located in the Judean Hills.

Chana Cromer - Synagogue Art

Chana Cromer, a Betzalel art school graduate, is a creator of Synagogue art made from textiles. She has created many beautiful parochets, torah covers and other religious articles for the synagoge which can be seen in synagogues around the world.

Chana currently teaches at Bar Ilan University in the Department of Jewish Art. Her art studio is located in Moshav Aminadav.

Chana's artwork has been exhibited in many locations, the most recent being “Covering Uncovering: Textiles in the Story of Joseph”, at the Rabinovitz Art Gallery located at Yale University in New Haven Connecticut.

Ruth Doron - Hand Crafted Silver Jewelry

Ruth Doron’s jewelry is designed and hand crafted using mostly silver, with combinations of natural gems, pearls and gold.

Ruth is a graduate of the Shenkar College of Design in Ramat Gan. She takes her inspiration from the beautiful local landscape of the Galilee where she lives, on Moshav Moledet – B’nai Brith. The moshav is located between Mt. Tabor and Mt. Gilboa and is one of the most beautiful locations in Israel.

Ruth started her art career working in silks and gradually moved into the field of silver jewelry.

Ruth’s husband Hagai is a Bible teacher. They have three children, two of them are currently serving in the IDF.

Yair Emanuel - Judaica Designer

Artist Yair Emanuel, a graduate of the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, lives and works in Jerusalem. Born on Kibbutz Sha'alavim he grew up in Jerusalem in an Orthodox home and later in life adopted a more pluralistic approach to Judaism. This background influenced Emanuel's style of Judaic art, which is based upon a fusion of traditional motifs and ancient Jewish manuscripts with modern and Oriental art. Vivid and harmonious colors as well as a mixture of the old and the new characterize Emanuel's work, which is designed and crafted in his Jerusalem studio.

The principal techniques utilized encompass painting on silk, hand-ebroidery, raw-silk applique and painting on wood.

Among the staff in his studio are new immigrants and mentally handicapped employees. A portion of the studio's profit is donated to charity.

Shulamit Kanter - Itzuviem Designs

Shulamit Kanter was born in Safed, one of the four mystical cities of Israel. She comes from an artistic family, her father an artist himself specializing in the traditional art of coppersmithing. Shulamit has been using her natural artistic abilities from a very young age, and received a broad-based education in art and design. Her designs are made from cast stone and decorated with silver, copper and colorful stones.

Jordana Klein - Painter

Jordana Klein has been painting for twenty years. She studied painting and fine arts at the School of Visual Arts in New York; The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, Stern College, The New School, and the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. She currently resides in Beit Shemesh, Israel and is painting and teaching art, focusing on unique buildings, scenery and the flora of Israel.

Jordana's original paintings are on display in galleries in New York and Jerusalem.

Anita Kushner - Painter

Anita Kushner is a painter who works in three main areas; -on canvas, in watercolors and with printmaking, the emphasis mainly on woodcuts. Having had over 30 solo shows in museums and galleries in the US, Canada, Europe and in Israel, Ms. Kushner is represented in public and private collections internationally. Selected solo exhibitions include the Yeshiva University Museum, NY, and the Herzliya Museum, Israel. In addition to a lifetime devoted to visual expression, Kushner also works as an art critic for various publications, the latest being The International Herald Tribune / Ha'aretz newspaper, with a column called "Profiles in Art".(1999 - 2000). Ms Kushner has been living in Israel since 1974, where she started by teaching at the University of Haifa. She is currently living at the Westbeth Artist Community in New York City.

Selected group shows include Sofia '96 Treinnal, Bulgaria, Chicago Art Institute,USA, Drawings Exhibited at the President of Israel's Residence, Jerusalem, Israel to Honor the Signing of the Israel - Egypt Peace Treaty, 1978 Phila Museum of Art Regional Drawing.

"Anita Kushner's Survival Series is an outstanding mark in the artist's longtime concern with human destiny. Whimsically, the series depicts mighty predators in a luxurious, colorful and impossible landscape. The stage seems to be a midway station between mineral and organic, calm and turbulent. Tension is everywhere, devilishly embedded in confused tectonic forms floating like a threatening electric cloud upon elastic bodies or screaming across astonishing combinations of soft + acid hues. The artist faces with courage, honesty and lucidity a dangerous challenge and comes out with a smashing testimony upon the state of the world. A consummate colorist and daring inventor of symbolic forms, Kushner moved far ahead on the narrow path between fable and report. She has created a fascinating body of work which matters to us all."

Dan Eban, Art Critic

Noam Lipshitz - Wire Sculptor

The first time Noam fashioned a wire form he was 18 years old. He often went walking in the fields of the kibbutz where he grew up. Once, while walking in the fields he came across a steel band used for sealing large packages. He fashioned the band into a form and set it on a hill top, where it seemed to fit. Since that time he has formed a special bond with metal wire, which was very plentiful in his surroundings. He would gather it up and fashion it into various forms, either two or three dimensional. The type and thickness of the wire influenced his choice of subject, as did his life experience.

By profession, he is both an artist and a historian. These seem far removed, one from the other, but he finds much similarity between the two. The historian chooses facts and details, which have importance for him, and fashions them into a scene of historic reality. He recognizes the human tendency to build a complete, logical picture, and he allows himself to utilize his logic and, more important, his imagination to supply the missing details. The wire in his art form is the knowledge. He chooses to fashion it in a particular way in space. The form is completed by the beholder's imagination.

Edith Mandel - Jeweler

EDITA Designs brings to you unique hand crafted jewelry pieces in classic and contemporary styles. The distinctive designs range from bold and daring to exotic and elegant. Each piece is hand embellished with a timeless and imaginative multi-colored combination of semi precious stones, pearls, Swarovski crystals, glass and ceramic beads and gold and silver plated beads.

This dazzling and colorful jewelry is created by a self-made artist, Edith Mandel-Epstein. Born in Lima, Peru, she was raised in the U.S. and Israel. A lawyer by profession, Edith practiced law both in the U.S. and Israel, yet always found time to sculpt, paint and create. She began by selling her creations to friends and neighbors. Soon orders started coming in, and thus, in early spring 2001 EDITA DESIGNS was born - Edith’s formal venture into the world of custom-made handcrafted jewelry. Today, EDITA’s jewelry sells in Israel, the United States, England and Holland.

Zeesi Paltrowitz - Painter and Jeweler

Zeesi Paltrowitz trained and worked as a textile designer for many years in the United States. Her clients included major fashion and home furnishing firms based in New York City. She also designed intricate patterns to decorate fine ceramic judaica for a top Israeli artist.

Since making Aliyah and settling in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Har Nof (Hebrew for Mountain View), Zeesi has created an exquisite collection of Judaica paintings. Amidst the magnificent biblical hills dotted with olive trees, Zeesi draws her inspiration from the colors and textures of Israel, as well as from textiles, florals, classical patterns and Jewish themes.

Mirry Reich - Stained Glass Judaica

Mirry Reich grew up in England. After graduating from Art School in Birmingham, England she made aliyah and studied Design in Shenkar College, Ramat Gan, Israel.

Mirry is married to Yaacov (husband, business partner, and blueberry farmer) and together they have raised 6 children. The Vitrage (Stained Glass) Studio is situated in their home in Kedumim and work is given to local people, among them immigrants from the former Soviet Union. Also, the family help out, whether it be soldering, shopping, delivering, packaging – there is a job for all !!

Mirry gets her inspiration for the designs from the biblical views surrounding her home. She looks out onto Mount Eival and Mount Grizim where the Leader Joshua, follower of Moses, entered the land of Israel.

Golde Schain - Golden Collection

Golden Collection is the creation of Golde Schain, an Israeli artist who made aliyah from Argentina in 1971. Her items are sold in Israel and around the world.

Golde creates Judaica and other useful items for the home out of wood, ceramics, stone and glass with decorative aluminum strips. Each metal design is made by hand.

Because of the flexible nature of working with aluminum decoration, Golde can create personal designs for businesses, institutions or family simchas. If you are interested in ordering a personalized design please speak with Brenda.

Marci Wiesel - Papercut Artist

Marci Wiesel grew up in Skokie, Illinois. She received a degree in architecture from Barnard College of Columbia University in New York. Upon marriage and starting a family, Marci’s skills shifted from designing buildings to creating Judaica. With her husband and children, Marci made aliya from Silver Spring, Maryland. The Wiesel’s now live in the beautiful Judean Hills, in Alon Shvut, just south of Jerusalem. After nearly fifteen years of creating papercut Judaica, Marci has developed a unique style of bordering and layering different combinations of textured papers and bright watercolor backgrounds. Her original works can be seen hanging in homes around the world.

Marci is excited to present to the public reproductions of her original pieces. These reproductions are in the form of hand-signed lasercuts. This special process allows more designs to be produced in a shorter time, thus making the artwork available and affordable to all, without compromising the level of workmanship.