Matanya Abramson
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Matanya Abramson (1920-2004) is an Israeli sculptor whose sculptures have been exhibited worldwide as well as in Israel. Matanya is a versatile artist who worked in marble, stone, and wood, as well as with bronze, aluminum and copper castings.
[edit] Biography
Matanya Abramson was born in the village of Kinneret, on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. He was the son of a pioneering farmer family that immigrated from Russia in the early 1900s.
Matanya started painting in childhood. After completing studies at the Mikve Israel agricultural school, he studied painting with various Israeli artists. He spent 12 years in military service in the Haganah, JSP, British Navy, Palyam, Palmach and the IDF.
After the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, Matanya studied sculpture from Schwarzmann and Koso Elul and spent 6 months in Paris in 1954. After returning from Paris, he went back to the farm in Kinneret and worked in agriculture, pursuing art in his free time.
In 1959, Matanya left the farming village and moved to the artists' quarter in Safed. Since then he has been occupied only with his art.
In 1962 he went to Italy for two years, pursuing his art. Six months were spent in the marble mines in Carrara, and a year and a half was spent in Florence. All his works from Italy were sent to an exhibition in New York in October 1963.
In 1964 he came back to Israel, living in the Ein-Kerem neighborhood of Jerusalem.
In 1965 Matanya moved to Old Jaffa, where he has worked since.
Matanya died in February 2004 and was buried in his home village, Kinerret, on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
[edit] Exhibitions & monuments
1960 - One Man Show - ZOA House, Tel-Aviv
1963 - One Man Show - Gallery Numero, Florence
1963 - One Man Show - Gallery Vercel, New-York
1965 - One Man Show - Gallery Vercel, New-York
1965 - Monument - Kibbutz Ein-Gedi (Israel)
1966 - One Man Show - Hamam, Old Jaffa (Israel)
1966 - Exhibition with the painter Alexander - Museum, Ramat Gan (Israel)
1967 - Exhibition with the painter Rosenboim - Museum, Bat-Yam (Israel)
1967 - Memorial Monument to the Fallen - Kinneret (Israel)
1968 - Third prize in the contest for building a monument in the square where a synagogue was burned down - Munich
1969 - Participant in an international symposium - Saint-Margareten (Austria)
1970 - One Man Show - Artists House, Jerusalem
1971 - One Man Show - Yarkon Gallery, Boston
1971 - Started work on monument in memory of "Oley Hagardom" - Acre (Israel)
1971 - Memorial Monument for the Fallen - Har-Habanim, Ramat-Gan (Israel)
1978 - One Man Show - Gallery Alte-Schmide, Vienna
1980 – large marble sculpture - Berlin Garden, Neot-Afeka, Tel-Aviv
1980 - One Man Show - Jewish-American Congress House, New-York
1983 - One Man Show - Herzliya Museum, Herzliya (Israel)
1986 - One Man Show - Institute Francais, Vienna
1986 - One Man Show - Gallery Susan Fischer, Baden-Baden
1992 - Exhibition with the painter Kipnis - Zurich Kosmus, Vienna
