Raffi Lavie (1937-2007) – I Love You – Mixed Media on Paper

Raffi Lavie (1937-2007) – I Love You – Mixed Media on Paper

Raffi Lavie (1937-2007), I Love You, [1961?].
Mixed media on paper. Signed.
49.5X34.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Minor stains. Minor creases and tears. Open tear to corner, damaging signature.
Raffi Lavie (1937-2007), native of Ramat Gan. Leading proponent of the local Israeli artistic style known as "Dalut HaHomer" ("Want of Matter"). In 1965, established the "Ten Plus" Group that sought to provide an avant-garde alternative to the dominant "Ofakim Hadashim" ("New Horizons") Group. Taught art for many years at HaMidrasha Faculty of the Arts in Ramat HaSharon, where he influenced a generation of artists with Conceptualist tendencies. Made use of childlike doodles, collage, and visual imagery involving such media as street notices, magazine photos, and other material in that vein. "For most of his life Lavie was opposed to all iconological interpretations of his works, embracing instead a modernist-formalist interpretation. In his art, Lavie emphasized the Ars Poetica approach to works of art, using a formalistic confrontation between the various elements of composition in a way that eliminates the illusion of depth, or resorting to such practices as the use of the color pink, or child-like scribbles – practices commonly regarded as undermining the concept of artistic taste. Nevertheless, toward the end of his life, he agreed to certain content-related and literary interpretations" (taken from the website of the Israel Museum’s Information Center for Israeli Art). At the celebrated exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art entitled "But the Word is Very Near to You: 'Want of Matter' as Quality in Israeli Art" (opened March 14, 1986), which gave expression to the "Want of Matter" artistic approach, Lavie emerged as the leading artist of the group associated with the "Tel Avivian" aesthetic – an aesthetic that is secular, slender, understated.
Provenance: The Rami Cohen Collection.

Art collector Rami Cohen (1941-2018), native of Poland, immigrated to Israel with his family in 1948. Educated in Moshav Nahalal, he began painting already in his youth. Served as a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces' standing army, and was decorated for the act of evacuating wounded soldiers under fire. Cohen was injured his right hand in the course of his army service, the injury leaving him disabled and unable to pursue his dream of becoming an artist. Nevertheless, he never lost his love for art, and the adversity he experienced simply led him to change direction from artist to art collector, and to devote much of his strength and wealth toward assembling his collection, leading him to become a passionately involved participant and a dominant influence in a number of different artistic circles. He organized and curated various art exhibitions, including, for example, "Nation Builds Land: Israeli History as Mirrored through Art" (1988) at the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art. His collection includes portraits by Yehezkel Streichman and Menashe Kadishman who personally presented them to him as gifts, as a token of their friendship. He similarly established close friendships with many other artists. Ensuring that Israeli art command the respect it deserved was high among his lifelong list of priorities, as was the challenge of enabling artists to thrive and prosper; to that end, he lent his personal assistance to artists seeking to advance their professional careers. He took a special interest in artists such as Michail Grobman, Shmuel Ackerman, and others arriving in Israel from the former Soviet Union, and helped bring them into the public spotlight. Initiated and edited the online database entitled "Omanut Israel" (or "Art 23,") which included articles and media reviews in addition to a great deal of professional material relating to the Israeli art scene, being utilized by professional and government bodies. His collection is multi-faceted and richly diverse, consisting of artworks by both Israeli and non-Israeli artists, representing a broad spectrum of artistic styles, schools, and trends – a collection that reflects significant and fascinating developments in the field of Israeli art over a period of several decades, all from the point of view of a true lover of art.