Ze'ev Raban

Ze'ev Raban, one of the founders of the Israeli visual art world, was a leading painter, decorative artist, and industrial designer. Born in Lodz Poland in 1890, Raban studied sculpture and architectural ornamentation at a number of European art academies.

Under the influence of Boris Schatz, founder of the Bezalel School of Art and Craft, Raban moved to the land of Israel in 1912. He joined the faculty of the Bezalel school, and soon took on a central role there as a teacher of repoussé, painting, and sculpture. He also directed the academy's Graphics Press and the Industrial Art Studio.

By 1914, most of the works produced in the school's workshops were of his design. In 1923 Raban, together with Meir Gur-Arieh, founded the Industrial Art Studio, where he produced most of his works.

Ze'ev Raban was a remarkable designer who, more than others, influenced the creation of the Bezalel style, which synthesized European art trends, techniques of Eastern applied art, and biblical motifs.

Raban died in 1970, in Jerusalem.