Lot 370: Samuel Ackerman (b. 1951) – City, 1977 – Acrylic on Canvas

Samuel Ackerman (b. 1951), City, 1977.
Acrylic on canvas. Signed and dated.
30X39.5 cm. Good condition.
Samuel Ackerman (b. 1951), native of Mukachevo (Munkatsch), Ukraine. Studied at the School for Monumental Art in Uzhhorod, and served as an artist in the armed forces of the Soviet Union. Immigrated to Israel in 1973 and settled in Jerusalem. Joined and collaborated with Michail Grobman and Avraham Ofek to form the Leviathan Group in 1975. The group style blended contemporary art with Jewish themes, symbolism, and metaphysics. Ackerman was a partner in the group until 1981. Moved to France in 1984; since then active in Paris, where he resides. His works are abstract, relying on symbolism, and influenced by both folkloric motifs and modern Western art.
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.