Ludwig Blum (; 24 July 1891 – 28 July 1974) was a Moravian-born

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

i painter. He emigrated to Israel in 1923, as part of the

Third Aliyah The Third Aliyah () refers to the third wave, or aliyah, of modern Jewish immigration to Palestine (region), Palestine from Europe. This wave lasted from 1919, just after the end of World War I, until 1923, at the start of an economic crisis in P ...

, and became known as "the painter of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

Early life

Memorial plaque in Brno-Líšeň ">Líšeň.html" ;"title="Brno-Líšeň">Brno-Líšeň Ludwig Blum was born in 1891 in Líšeň (now part of Brno), Margraviate of Moravia. He emigrated to Mandatory Palestine in 1923, as part of the

. He served in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He was privately educated in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and later attended the Academy of Fine Arts in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Career

Upon his arrival in Mandatory Palestine, and as a dedicated

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

, Blum started paintings scenes of everyday life and landscapes in Israel. He did many paintings of Jerusalem (including the

Western Wall The Western Wall (; ; Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: ''HaKosel HaMa'arovi'') is an ancient retaining wall of the built-up hill known to Jews and Christians as the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. Its most famous section, known by the same name ...

and the Mount of Olives),

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

, the

Sea of Galilee The Sea of Galilee (, Judeo-Aramaic languages, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ), also called Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth ...

and the Judaean Mountains. Additionally, he painted some kibbutzes: Kiryat Anavim and

Degania Alef Degania Alef (, ) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. The Jewish communal settlement ('' kvutza'') was founded in 1910, making it the earliest Labor Zionist farming commune in the Land of Israel. Its status as "the mother of all kibbutzim" is some ...

, and the lives of Israeli soldiers, including the Palmach. He also painted copper mines in the Timna Valley. He also painted the Arch of Constantine in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and a vase of roses. Blum became known as "the painter of Jerusalem". In 1933, his painting entitled simply ''Jerusalem'' was honoured at the

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In 1967, he received the Yakir Yerushalayim from the City of Jerusalem. In 2011 the Museum of Biblical Art in Manhattan held an exhibition of Blum's paintings.

Death

Blum died in 1975 in

Selected paintings

*''Jerusalem in the Snow'' (1927). *''Jerusalem, Temple Mount'' (1928). *''Vase of Rose'' (1931). *''Kibbutz Kiryat Anavim'' (1932). *''Kibbutz Degania'' (1934). *''The Judea mountains'' (1943). *''The Arch of Constantine'' (1944). *''Jerusalem, seen from Mount Scopus'' (1950). *''The Market in Jerusalem'' (1950). *''View of Jerusalem from the Hill of Evil Counsel'' (1951). *''Landscape'' (1956). *''Timna, Copper Mines'' (1957). *''View of Jerusalem'' (1962). *''Jerusalem, David's Tower and the Sultan's Pool, seen from Mishkanot Shaananim'' (1964). *''The Western Wall''. *''The walled city of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives''. *''Sea of Galilee''. *''Portrait with a keffiyeh''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blum, Ludwig 1891 births 1974 deaths Artists from Brno Artists from the Margraviate of Moravia Moravian Jews Czechoslovak emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Czech Zionists 20th-century Israeli painters Orientalist painters Israeli landscape painters Painters of pre-1948 Palestine Academy of Fine Arts in Prague alumni Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Jewish Israeli painters Burials at Har HaMenuchot Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni

Early life

Career

Death

Selected paintings

See also

Further reading

References