Registration is now open for the undergraduate program at Bezalel for the academic year 2025–26.

Open day - Tuesday, 17.12.24, for the departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture*, Fine Arts, Screen-based Arts, Ceramics and Glass Design, Industrial Design, Jewelry and Fashion, Photography, Visual Communication and a theoretical degree (B.A.) in Visual and Material Culture.

Details and registration

The Department offers its students full academic freedom to explore possible directions for activity, thought and creation – to refine their ability to think critically and observe analytically. The rich spectrum of courses encourages them to develop knowledge of work methods that help them gain technical skills and the opportunity to study both theoretical and practical concepts. 

To help understand photography’s global rebirth and the unusual magnitude of its growth and development, the curriculum integrates theoretical, historical and conceptual studies with hands-on technological practice covering a broad range of visual practices. Since photography is also defined by its cultural framework, the program also includes courses on the complex social and political environment of the Middle East.

In the last five decades, Bezalel’s Department of Photography has become recognized as the most prominent and prestigious photography department in the region. Its outstanding academic and professional training, combined with its geopolitical location in Jerusalem and the fact it is an integral part of Israel’s leading arts and design institute, have positioned it as a significant and influential component of the local and international photography world. 

Registration is now open for the undergraduate program at Bezalel for the academic year 2025–26.

Open day - Tuesday, 17.12.24, for the departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture*, Fine Arts, Screen-based Arts, Ceramics and Glass Design, Industrial Design, Jewelry and Fashion, Photography, Visual Communication and a theoretical degree (B.A.) in Visual and Material Culture.

Details and registration

The Department of Ceramics and Glass Design is the only academic degree program of its kind in Israel and the Academy’s only program that focuses on the essential understanding the primary materials involved – ceramics and glass. Combining craft and art, students are taught the secrets of ancient materials and given the resources to find ground-breaking new directions for their chosen mediums. Using their acquired knowledge and skills, students can expand their craft to embrace new media, tools and contemporary viewpoints – infusing the visual legacies of Israel’s diverse communities into the future of artistic culture. With this approach, the Department empowers and energizes the students to explore, discover and think out-of-the-box, giving them the freedom and space to realize and pursue what speaks to them personally. 

In the world of art and design, professionals need to be recognized as unique – so the Department of Ceramics and Glass Design provides a unique curriculum for each student. Together they learn to marry multiple disciplines, technologies, values and visual culture; individually, they learn to express their singular conclusions through the language of their craft, graduating with superior skills, self-awareness and the ability to present their work to the world. 

The Department deals with all design aspects related to today’s most topical and timely issues: from the connection between material activity and digital media through questions about sustainability and ecology to discussions about social and ethical values.

We believe our students come to Bezalel to acquire more than an outstanding professional education but rather to become active partners in developing an ethos of quality, accuracy, commitment and enthusiasm that will change the face of Israeli society. It is precisely the craft tradition (art) that offers a critical starting point and an alternative and value-laden response to the adversities and despair of 21st century society. 

The Department is home to those who dream that change can take place and they can help make that happen.  

Registration for the Graduate programs

For details and registration>>

Bezalel’s Master’s Program in Fine Arts (M.F.A.) is the Academy’s oldest and most sought-after master’s degree. As the only studio-based program in the region, acceptance is highly competitive. The program acts as an incubator, offering promising emerging artists a unique opportunity to refine their talents as they strive to create an original, focused and experimental body of work.

Bezalel’s M.F.A. stresses that artists do not operate in a vacuum – rather that art is forever informed by the intellectual, moral and cultural climate of the time and place where it is created. This is compounded by the distinctive location in which the program operates reinforces this important viewpoint and the program’s identity. Theory studies and workshops take place on Bezalel’s main campus in Jerusalem, while the individual studio spaces are located in a former textile factory in southern Tel Aviv. This area is a melting pot of immigrants and locals, culturally and economically varied; a semi-industrial neighborhood set amidst centuries-old Jewish, Muslim and Christian sites.

Alongside the local context, the program highlights the global reality and framework in which the young artists operate, offering them a wide spectrum of international collaborations with peer programs, lecturers and leading artists. Throughout their time at the Academy, students are mentored by the program’s multicultural faculty along with local and international artists, while sharing their distinct perspectives within the diverse student body. These meaningful and fruitful encounters often result in innovative and insightful professional cooperation and partnerships – partnerships that continue well past graduation.

The program offers students full academic freedom along with exposure to a wide range of conceptual and artistic perspectives, to help them sharpen their critical point of view and comparative analytic skills. At the same time, the MFA presents its students with the practical skills they will need to pave their way in the art world and beyond it, as dynamic and relevant artists and as socially, politically engaged and active citizens of the world.

המזכירות האקדמית היא הזרוע המבצעת בתחום המנהל האקדמי בבצלאל.

היא משמשת כגוף המתאם את הפעילות המנהלית-אקדמית החל משלב הגשת המועמדות לבצלאל ועד לסיום הלימודים האקדמיים, לרבות טיפול במערך חילופי הסטודנטים בחו"ל ותכניות מיוחדות.  

במזכירות האקדמית פועל 'המרכז לפניות הסטודנט' המטפל בפניות בתחום שכר הלימוד, אישורי לימודים, כיתות לימוד ועוד.

עמוד המזכירות האקדמית מתעדכן באופן שוטף לגבי מידע לסטודנטים בנושאים כלל בצלאלים חוצי מחלקות כגון: תקנוני ונהלי האקדמיה, שכר לימוד, נהלי חילופי סטודנטים, לוחות שנה, שנתון אקדמי ועוד.

Office of International Academic Affairs

As the oldest and most prominent art and design institution in Israel, Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design has a long history of international collaborations with a wide range of academies, art institutions, artists and designers from throughout the world. In 2019,  Bezalel established the Office of International Academic Affairs as part of its new vision to initiate, expand and develop international collaborations, with a special emphasis on ventures that address theoretical, pedagogic and practical challenges in the fields of art, design and architecture.

Since its founding in 1906, Bezalel has emphasized the preservation of time-honored traditions while nurturing innovative and groundbreaking practices. The preeminent player in the Israeli art and design worlds, the Academy’s faculty, students and alumni are at the forefront of the Israeli creative sphere and participate frequently in numerous international projects with great success.

The Office of International Academic Affairs sets out to further develop these trends and promote collaboration with institutions, research centers, think tank groups, industries, artists and designers from around the world, while encouraging international projects that contribute to the reflective contemplation of the local scene and cross-fertilization. International intercultural connections fostered through shared learning, creation and research experiences are vital for the exchange of new ideas and discourse, facilitating rich and challenging discussion and a rethinking of presuppositions, consequently  engendering better artists, designers and citizens.

The Office of International Academic Affairs provides meeting points for different approaches to creativity and learning, promotes an international teaching culture, enriches the learning experience and expands the scope of international opportunities for the faculty, students, and alumni.

The Office works is engaged in

• Facilitating access to information and supporting contacts with international partners to create research, teaching and exhibition opportunities
• Creating and establishing a variety of independent research and exhibition projects
• Assisting existing initiatives of faculty members on these issues
• Supporting the invitation and hospitality of international creatives and scholars on campus
• Promoting faculty exchange projects.

The Office of International Academic Affairs works in full collaboration with the Student Exchange Office, with the understanding that the personal and professional connections formed in the exchange programs constitute an important basis for lasting professional relationships and networks.

For details and registration>>

We live in a time that is often defined by the constant acceleration of cultural and technological changes. New technologies and the social transformations associated with them lead to the spread and intensification of visual space – and at the same time, of the growing opportunities to those engaged in visual communication. Simultaneously, there is increasing recognition of the public and economic power of designers’ creativity and innovation wherever they operate.

Bezalel’s graduate program in visual communication, the only one of its kind in Israel, acts as a groundbreaking incubator for the creation of innovative projects in the field. The program is designed to help students develop their professional expertise and acquire new skills that will enable them to act as agents of change in the visual, cultural and technological spaces of the 21st century. At the core of the program is a practice-based research project that students originate with experts from the areas of visual communication, theory and technology.

The program’s synthesis of theory and practice encourages students to develop a profoundly critical position in their field and expand its boundaries by incorporating precision, initiative and daring into their thinking and work.

The program has received local and global recognition for the outstanding artistry of its graduates – among them, the quality of their contributions to international collaborations and the creativity of their works, which are exhibited and screened at important festivals at home and abroad.

Registration is now open for the undergraduate program at Bezalel for the academic year 2025–26 

Open day - Tuesday, 17.12.24, for the departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture*, Fine Arts, Screen-based Arts, Ceramics and Glass Design, Industrial Design, Jewelry and Fashion, Photography, Visual Communication and a theoretical degree (B.A.) in Visual and Material Culture 

Open day - Thursday, 19.12.14, School of Architecture (Architecture, Landscape Architecture*).

Details and registration

Bezalel’s Undergraduate Program in Architecture embraces an integrated, multi-layered and multidisciplinary approach that serves as a platform for innovation and creativity in both research and practice. It aims to prepare its students to become architects who can function as highly skilled designers, planners, researchers, curators, choreographers and leaders at home and abroad. 

Most of all, it strives to provide its graduates with a broad humanistic education and a strong sense of social sensitivity, so they will become the designers of the future, acting to redefine the architect's role and responsibilities through political and social engagement. 

The broad-based curriculum emphasizes design research, originality, critical deliberation and active involvement in a wide range of related fields. The undergraduate program integrates theory and practice, research and design in different contexts and dimensions. It combines a variety of courses such as the history and theory of ideas and materials, with practical tools such as art and design, drawing, construction skills, technology studies and above all the comprehensive design studio.

Alongside with acquiring this requisite knowledge, students explore issues that have a profound impact on people’s lives – urban design, environmental and landscape design, new building technologies, housing and social equality, climate change and artificial intelligence. The Department serves as a forum for open and critical discussion that seeks to challenge and influence professional norms and public debate regarding the discipline's role in designing  the built and open space in Israel and around the world.

Registration is now open for the undergraduate program at Bezalel for the academic year 2025–26.

Open day - Tuesday, 17.12.24, for the departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture*, Fine Arts, Screen-based Arts, Ceramics and Glass Design, Industrial Design, Jewelry and Fashion, Photography, Visual Communication and a theoretical degree (B.A.) in Visual and Material Culture.

Details and registration

Visual communication is the most common form of art in our everyday lives. It is present in almost everything we see and almost everywhere we look – on bookshelves and billboards, television and computer screens, posters, magazines and smartphones. It is a  language that uses image, color, motion, sound, text, and matter to communicate messages, ideas, emotions and information through shape and form. It can educate, entertain, change the way we think and impact our behavior. 

At Bezalel, the curriculum is designed to lead students to rethink how they regard problems, how they analyze complex situations and produce innovative solutions using their integrated design and communication expertise. The program encourages creativity in storytelling and self expression that transcends boundaries, that explores and experiments, while constantly striving for excellence in all aspects and professional standards.

The Department trains designers to understand the pervasive influence of the discipline, how to approach each task from a critical and ethical perspective – and above all, how to use their talents and skills to make a positive influence in the world. In Israel and abroad, the Department’s graduates are leaders in the vast and varied world of this unique form of communication, transforming the visual landscape of our lives and our world.

Registration for the Graduate programs is closing >> 26.7

For details and registration>>

This two-year program has the distinction of being the only graduate program in Israel dedicated to examining contemporary art, design and culture – doing so from the unique perspective of the humanities and social sciences. It combines an academic exploration of how these fields function with a hands-on approach to how they are evidencing themselves in Israel today. 

Within this framework, the program’s two specialized tracks – Curatorial Studies and Cultural Criticism – address the growing need for both theoretical discussion and professional training in disciplines that complement the art and design world: the management of institutions of art and culture; curatorial studies; museology; art criticism; the history of design; cultural and national policies. 

The Curatorial Studies track provides students with the knowledge and ability to challenge conventional visual displays and presentations in this ever-expanding field; the Cultural Criticism track is the only one in Israel that provides students with the necessary training in this unusual and demanding profession. The option of a thesis degree, which is necessary to pursue a Ph.D. degree, is available upon completion of all requirements. 

Specialists in these fields serve as bridges between the public, artists, designers and cultural innovators. They have the power to bring artwork closer to the community and play a vital role in the evolution of culture, the discourse surrounding it and the principles and procedures that guide leaders in the field. 

Graduates of the M.A. in Policy and Theory of Arts program enjoy meaningful positions in their chosen fields in Israel and abroad. Those who chose to complete the M.A. program with a thesis have continued their studies in PhD programs at major universities around the world.

Bezalel’s Art and Design Teaching Center

Informed by Bezalel’s unique teaching and learning needs and characteristics, the Academy’s Art and Design Teaching Center was planned to create a professional and continuous foundation for the development of teaching at the Academy. Much like art and design, the Center considers teaching to be a creative, dynamic, reflective and knowledge-based practice. The Center encourages the development of teaching and learning processes, while leading innovative initiatives within Bezalel and in collaboration with various Israeli and international academic institutions.

An independent team in the Bezalel ecosystem, the Center works closely with the Academy’s academic and administrative units with the belief that the formulation of sustainable teaching requires a holistic, multidisciplinary, creative and open approach. Through its members – who are themselves lecturers in Bezalel departments – the Center is involved in all aspects of teaching and learning in the Academy, systematically examining the challenges various academic units face and responding to emerging needs.

The Center works in three corresponding and complementary spheres:

• Teaching development – as a framework for the formulation of teaching tools, ideas and skill for lecturers
• Teaching management – as a framework for the professional development of academic directors in academic training, teaching and learning evaluation; curricula construction and evaluation; and academic leadership
• Education research – as a framework for the facilitation and support of teaching and learning research, allowing lecturers to systematically examine various teaching methods with the aim of developing new practices.

Bezalel is a learning community whose different partners – and primarily faculty members and students – engage in an ongoing exploration of pedagogies and in shaping diverse, varied and new learning experiences. The Center wishes to involve as many stakeholders as possible in the research and development of teaching and learning at the Academy and share the knowledge, tools and ideas formulated within it with as wide an audience as possible.