TEL AVIV.- The Baruch and Ruth Rappaport Foundation is increasing its support for the Israeli artist community this year and changes the layout of the prize according to the needs of the hour, due to the corona pandemic.

This year, the fund will purchase artworks worth $150,000 from artists of all ages living in Israel, for the Rappaport Collection at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

In addition, the Rappaport Foundation will fund a contemporary Israeli art exhibition in the public space.

In 2006, the Rappaport Foundation established an annual award given to two Israeli artists - a senior artist and a promising artist. Every year, solo exhibitions of the award winners open at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

In light of the Corona pandemic, based on the vision of Baruch and Ruth Rappaport and out of a commitment to advancing the world of culture, the foundation decided to increase its support for the art community in Israel.

In a year in which the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, like other cultural institutions, was forced to close its doors to visitors and the existence of exhibitions in the physical space is in question, it was decided to change the award outline for 2021 and adapt it to the current needs. The unique outline, formulated in collaboration with the Museum, offers two channels for supporting promising and senior artists:

Purchase of works for the Ruth and Baruch Rappaport Israeli Art Collection Rappaport collection at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art:

The community of artists in the country has been struggling to survive in an art market environment that has been declining in recent decades. The corona pandemic has exacerbated the conditions, and many of them are forced to give up work spaces and face postponements and cancellations of exhibitions. The new outline of acquisitions will resonate with the traditional distribution of the award, embracing senior and young artists, and will make a significant contribution to the field of Israeli art in Israel.

Exhibition in the public space
The closure of cultural institutions emphasized the need to expand and flexibilize the physical boundaries of the Museum. In the coming months, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art will initiate an exhibition that will exist between the private space and the public space. The exhibition, fully funded by the Baruch and Ruth Rappaport Foundation, will take place in architectural threshold spaces and will be accessible to passers-by.

Both projects will be documented and uploaded to the Tel Aviv Museum of Art website and the Rappaport Awards website, and will be highly visible at a time when culture finds itself blocked from the public eye.