The Rywkind Ben Zour Prize for graduates of the Master’s Program in Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

The Master’s Program in Fine Arts of the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Jerusalem is proud to announce the “Rywkind Ben Zour Prize”, which will be awarded for the first time, in collaboration with the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, to a graduate of the program.

The prize includes a grant of NIS 40,000 from Iris Rywkind and Eran Ben Zour, as well as the selection of the student’s artwork for inclusion in the permanent collection of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. In addition, within three years from the date of the announcement, the selected artwork will be displayed in the Tel Aviv Museum of Art as part of a group exhibition, in the permanent exhibit of Israel art, or in a solo exhibition.

The purpose of the prize is to encourage the personal, artistic and professional growth of the most recent batch of Bezalel graduates in the Master’s Program in Fine Arts. The prize is intended to nurture their creativity at this unique time, as they venture forth on their individual paths as independent and active participants in the art world, and to encourage excellence in the field of contemporary art with an emphasis on original and ground-breaking work.

The adjudication committee, consisting of curators from the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, will conduct a tour of graduates’ exhibits every year and will review the portfolios of members of the class. This is intended to deepen the professional dialogue between the museum’s curatorial team and graduates of the program and to expose the current generation of artists to the local and international art scene.

The vision of the founders of the prize, Iris Rywkind and Eran Ben Zour, focuses on the unique relationship forged between two long-standing and key art institutions in Israel, both of which have achieved a prestigious status and broad international recognition – the Master’s Program in Fine Arts at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Jerusalem and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. This is also an opportunity for the founders of the prize to strengthen, promote and encourage the bond between academia and the museum scene in Israel.

The winner of the prize will be announced at the Master’s Program in Fine Arts’ graduates exhibition, on Aug. 8, 2024.

For further information about the exhibition