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Yehiel Shemi (Stizberg), Israeli, 1922–2003.

Yehiel Stizberg was born in 1922. When he was two months old his parents immigrated to the Land of Israel and settled in Haifa. He became active in the “Mahanot Haolim” youth movement and studied drawing with Paul K. Henich. In 1939 Stizberg became one of the founders of Kibbutz Beit Ha'arava on the Dead Sea's northern shore. In addition to his agricultural work, he also worked in art. In the early 1940s he lived in a commune in Tel Aviv, where he was influenced by the works of Itzhak Danziger. In the years 1945–1948 he lived in the United States as an emissary of the “he-Halutz” youth movement, changing his name at this time to “Shemi.” In 1949 he was one of the founders of Kibbutz Cabri. In 1952 he joined the “New Horizons” group. During this period Shemi was also active in the “Kibbutzim Artists' Organization.” In the early 1960s he returned to New York for a short time. In 1986 he was awarded the Israel Prize for Sculpture. After his death his studio was turned into an exhibition space called “Atelier Shemi.”

His early works, before 1950, are figurative. The majority of them are done using traditional methods such as carving in stone. Some of these works show the influence of Danziger in their tendency to depict figures in the Eastern artistic tradition. In the mid-1950s Shemi began welding metals. At first, he used this method to create figurative sculptures, such as “Bird” (1957). In the 1960s he produced a large number of abstract assemblages. In the 1970s he began to produce large-scale works, influenced by constructivist trends. Among his best known works are “Sea Sculpture” (1967) in Atlit, his “Memorial to the Fallen Soldiers of the Egoz Unit” (1972) at Ben Gurion Airport, and the series of sculptures “Syllables.” In addition to his sculpting, in the 1980s he began to produce paintings and prints.

Education

1937-38 Reali High School, Haifa
1959-1961 advanced studies, Paris, France
1941 Advanced studies in sculpture with Itzhak Danziger, Tel Aviv
1940s Studied sculpture with Chaim Gross, New York

Teaching

1977-79 Oranim Art Institute, Tivon, sculpture and environmental sculpture
1977-78 Art School, Ein Hod, sculpture
1977-79 Technion, Haifa, Lecturer on environmental design

Awards And Prizes

1954 Dizengoff Prize for Painting and Sculpture, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Jaffa
1966 Milo Club Prize
1981 Sandberg Prize for Israeli Art, Israel Museum, Jerusalem
1986 Israel Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Sculpture
2000 The Mendel and Eva Pundik Foundation Prize for an Israeli Artist, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Tel Aviv