David Maaravi 1896 - 1945
Untitled, circa 1915

Untitled, circa 1915
Gouache, 16X23.5 cm

About The Artist:

Sing Our Youth- David Maaravi - Nahum Gutman’s long forgotten friend from Bezalel



“Everyday all these individuals, dubbed “Bezalelians” sat on boxes, painting. They shared a common ground of shapes, light and colors., yet they were misunderstood – to the extent that the “Bezalel” institution, which still operates today, never bothered to keep any trace of these “Bezalelians”, not even a small collection of paintings. Where are the pictures of Maaravi-Marovne?” Nahum Gutman asks in his book :‘Between Sand Dunes and Sky of Blue”.

I found the paintings and sketches of David Maaravi-Marovne (1896-1945) in the attic of his daughter, Behira Tal. Real treasures can be discovered not only with the help of maps, sometimes it is sheer coincidence that unveils them.

So who is David Maaravi? He was Born in Russia, in 1896. As a young boy, Maaravi decided to immigrate to Israel by himself. Once in Israel, he was accepted as a student at Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts, where he studied painting and sculpture with Prof. Boris Schatz, under conditions of great poverty. In 1916 he was sent, along with other Bezalel students, to work in agriculture and as a guard throughout the country.

Around 1920, Maaravi settled in Tel Aviv. It was during this period that alongside fine arts, he felt compelled to practice music. He conducted many choirs, and arranged for choir his own music as well as the music of other composers. For 25 years Maaravi worked as a school teacher for music and fine arts. He composed more than 80 children’s songs, some of which became classics, among them are: “shira Hanoar” (Sing Our Youth the Song of our future), “Gina Li” (I have a Garden), “Kashtenu Al Shichmenu” (our bows across our shoulders), and more.

His notable reputation was mainly due to his music career, which was the focus of his work. In 1945 Maaravi died unexpectedly, at the ago of 49.Not much is left of Maaravi’s artistic endeavor: three sculptures in the Bezalel archives, a collection of sketches in the Israel Museum, and the estate held by his daughter.



Nahum Gutman Adds: “And one with curly hair, which appears from an open shirt, immigrated from Russia. He was working ceaselessly in a dark corner of the studio – suddenly shouting as if pricked by a needle. It would happen when misplaced a color. He was a great painter and if it weren’t for his untimely death, he would have become, probably, one of the greatest Jewish painters of the Parisian school.”



Nurit Tal-Tenne