Lot 395: Eduard Steinberg (1937-2012) – Untitled, 2001

Eduard Steinberg (1937-2012), artist and philosopher. Native of Moscow. His father, the poet, translator, and artist Arkadi Steinberg, a graduate of the Vkhutemas Art Faculty, was arrested and deported to a forced-labor camp not long after Eduard was born. Following Arkadi's release from confinement, the family moved to Tarusa, Kaluga oblast, not far from Russia's western border. Eduard was instructed in art by his father, but was otherwise an essentially autodidactic artist. Returned to Moscow in the early 1960s and joined the Non-Conformist Artists' Group. His early works were at first Realistic, but by the 1970s, his output had taken on an entirely abstract and geometric nature, deriving inspiration from the Russian Avant-Garde, and in particular from Russian Suprematism. Steinberg was persecuted by the Soviet authorities on account of his being a dissident and a non-conformist Artist, and never managed to present his works at an official, legal exhibition until 1974. Began exhibiting at the Galerie Claude Bernard in Paris in 1980, and shortly thereafter took up residence in Paris, being active there most of the time in the following decades, but also occasionally returning to spend time in Moscow and Tarusa. His later works represent an important link between the First and Second Russian Avant-Garde movements.
Provenance: The Rami Cohen Collection.

Art collector Rami Cohen (1941-2018), native of Poland, immigrated to Israel with his family in 1948. Educated in Moshav Nahalal, he began painting already in his youth. Served as a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces' standing army, and was decorated for the act of evacuating wounded soldiers under fire. Cohen was injured his right hand in the course of his army service, the injury leaving him disabled and unable to pursue his dream of becoming an artist. Nevertheless, he never lost his love for art, and the adversity he experienced simply led him to change direction from artist to art collector, and to devote much of his strength and wealth toward assembling his collection, leading him to become a passionately involved participant and a dominant influence in a number of different artistic circles. He organized and curated various art exhibitions, including, for example, "Nation Builds Land: Israeli History as Mirrored through Art" (1988) at the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art. His collection includes portraits by Yehezkel Streichman and Menashe Kadishman who personally presented them to him as gifts, as a token of their friendship. He similarly established close friendships with many other artists. Ensuring that Israeli art command the respect it deserved was high among his lifelong list of priorities, as was the challenge of enabling artists to thrive and prosper; to that end, he lent his personal assistance to artists seeking to advance their professional careers. He took a special interest in artists such as Michail Grobman, Shmuel Ackerman, and others arriving in Israel from the former Soviet Union, and helped bring them into the public spotlight. Initiated and edited the online database entitled "Omanut Israel" (or "Art 23,") which included articles and media reviews in addition to a great deal of professional material relating to the Israeli art scene, being utilized by professional and government bodies. His collection is multi-faceted and richly diverse, consisting of artworks by both Israeli and non-Israeli artists, representing a broad spectrum of artistic styles, schools, and trends – a collection that reflects significant and fascinating developments in the field of Israeli art over a period of several decades, all from the point of view of a true lover of art.