Rudolf (Rudi) Lehmann (; 1903–1977) was a German-born Israeli sculptor and

wood carving Wood carving (or woodcarving) is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculpture, ...

artist. He was one of the pioneers of sculpture in the State of Israel.

Biography

Rudolf (Rudi) Lehmann (1903-1977), born in Berlin, August 25, 1903 to non-Jewish German Elizabeth Sender. In 1919 Rudolf was adopted by the Lehmann family. He was one of the pioneers of wood sculpting in the State of Israel.

Studies

In 1912 in Berlin, he practiced wood sculpture with Ludwig Vordermayer. From 1917 to 1922, he studied mechanics and worked as a blacksmith's apprentice. After studying woodcarving and sculpture with sculptor Harold Isenstein, he attended the :de:Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weißensee (Municipal Art School Berlin-Weißensee), majoring in sculpture and ceramics. During his studies there, he met Hedwig Grossman, whom he later married. In 1928-1930, Lehmann worked for Holzmann's Stone Mason and Carving company. He became a freelance stonemason and sculptor for museums around Germany, including the

Pergamon Museum The Pergamon Museum (; ) is a Kulturdenkmal , listed building on the Museum Island in the Mitte (locality), historic centre of Berlin, Germany. It was built from 1910 to 1930 by order of Emperor Wilhelm II, German Emperor, Wilhelm II and accordi ...

in Berlin, and worked in terra cotta at Hedwig's ceramics workshop. In the summer of 1933, Lehmann immigrated to Mandate Palestine with his wife and settled in

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

. They established a ceramics testing laboratory at the Technion in Haifa and settled on

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

Yagur Yagur () is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located on the northeastern slopes of Mount Carmel, about 9 km southeast of Haifa, it falls under the jurisdiction of Zevulun Regional Council. In it had a population of , making it one of the two ...

in 1935, where they established a flower pot factory. In 1937, the couple opened a sculpture studio in

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 ...

, where Lehmann produced miniature carvings from olive wood, ivory, horn and gemstones sold as tourist souvenirs. From 1945 to 1947, Lehmann worked for the

Haganah Haganah ( , ) was the main Zionist political violence, Zionist paramilitary organization that operated for the Yishuv in the Mandatory Palestine, British Mandate for Palestine. It was founded in 1920 to defend the Yishuv's presence in the reg ...

, building models and ballistic implements. In 1947-1948, he joined the

Jewish Agency The Jewish Agency for Israel (), formerly known as the Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. It was established in 1929 as the operative branch of the World Zionist Organization (WZO). As an ...

's Self-Defense Planning Committee. Orot lahaman

In 1953, he helped to found the

Ein Hod Ein Hod () is a village in Haifa District in northern Israel. Located at the foot of Mount Carmel and southeast of Haifa, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaCarmel Regional Council and has the status of community settlement (Israel), comm ...

Artists' Village, where he taught sculpture. Among his students were Yigael Tumarkin and

Menashe Kadishman Menashe Kadishman (Hebrew: מנשה קדישמן; August 21, 1932 – May 8, 2015) was an Israeli sculptor and painter. Biography Menashe Kadishman was born in Mandate Palestine Bilha and Ben-Zion Kadishman. His father died when he was 15 years ...

. In 1959, Lehmann and his wife moved to

Givatayim Givatayim () is a city in Israel east of Tel Aviv. It is part of the Gush Dan metropolitan area. Givatayim was established in 1922 by pioneers of the Second Aliyah. In it had a population of . The name of the city comes from the "two hills" on w ...

where he established an art school under the auspices of the Givatayim municipality. The school held classes in sculpture, woodcuts and ceramics for young people and adults. Lehmann's work was influenced by the

Canaanism Canaanism was a cultural and ideological movement founded in 1939, reaching its peak among the Jews of Mandatory Palestine during the 1940s. It has had a significant effect on the course of Israeli art, literature and spiritual and political t ...

school of Israeli art. which attempted to create a direct relationship with the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

by emphasizing simple shapes and motifs from the sculpture and ritual art of early Middle Eastern civilizations. He died in 1977.

Awards and recognition

*1933

Dizengoff Prize The Dizengoff Prize for Painting and Sculpture is awarded annually by the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality since 1937. The prize is named after Meir Dizengoff, the first mayor of Tel Aviv. According to the Tel Aviv municipality, the purpose of the pri ...

for Painting and Sculpture, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo *1951

for Painting and Sculpture, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo *1953

for Painting and Sculpture, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo *1966

for Painting and Sculpture, Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo

Education

*1912 Academy of Berlin, Germany, wood sculpture with Vordermeyer *1917 Berlin, Germany, blacksmithing and metalworking *1922-24 woodcarving and sculpture with sculptor Harold Isenstein *1923 Municipal High School for Art, Berlin, Germany, sculpture and ceramics *1924-28 Modern Art School, Berlin, Germany, sculpture and ceramics

Teaching

*1923-25 Art School, Berlin Municipality, Germany *1934

Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design () is a public college of design and art located in Jerusalem. Established in 1906 by Jewish painter and sculptor Boris Schatz, Bezalel is Israel's oldest institution of higher education and is considered the ...

, Jerusalem *1959 Studio in Givatayim, sculpture and ceramics

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lehmann, Rudi Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to Mandatory Palestine German art educators Israeli sculptors 1903 births 1977 deaths Burials at South Cemetery in Israel