Ben- Gurion University of the Negev the Faculty Of

BEN- GURION UNIVERSITY OF THE NEGEV THE FACULTY OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT OF THE ARTS A POSTMODERN METAMORPHOSIS: THE PROCESS OF MICHAEL SGAN-COHEN'S RECEPTION INTO THE ISRAELI ART FIELD THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE (M.A.) RUTH RUBENSTEIN UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF: DR. MERAV YERUSHALMY DECEMBER, 2014 Acknowledgments I would like first and foremost to thank my advisor, Dr. Merav Yerushalmy, for showing me incredible support and enlightening guidance throughout the writing of this thesis. Leora Laor Sgan-Cohen, Michael Sgan-Cohen's widow, for her inexhaustible willingness to answer endless questions, her kind sharing of written and visual material, and her generosity in opening her home and Michael Sgan- Cohen's archive for research purposes. Miriam Tuviah-Boneh, curator of Sgan-Cohen's first two solo exhibitions, and Itamar Levi, a key player following Sgan-Cohen's second solo show, as they openhandedly gave their time for a lengthy interview, sharing their knowledge and insights, and filling in historical gaps regarding Sgan-Cohen's exhibitions. As I am visually impaired, I am so grateful to Alona Tzadik, librarian Ben-Gurion University, and Meir Shapira and Eran Rosenzweig, periodical department, Beit Ariela Library, Tel-Aviv, in going beyond the boundaries of their positions to help me collect written material necessary for this research. Danny Unger, chairman of the art department, Ben-Gurion University, for his emotional care and encouragement throughout my M.A. studies and Carmelit Manor, administrative director of the arts department, Ben-Gurion University, for her attentive and endless assistance. And finally, to my dear and beloved partner, Oded Lerman, as his emotional and loving support qualified the space to focus, research, and write this thesis. I Abstract This thesis examines Michael Sgan-Cohen's reception by the Israeli art field over a 25 year time frame. It suggests that while Sgan-Cohen's signature style of referencing and reworking Jewish sources in a conceptual and theoretical manner did not change much throughout this time frame, the Israeli art field did shift in regard to their reception of his work. This move metamorphosed from an unfavorable position in 1978, to a more comprehensive stance 1994, to recognizing Sgan-Cohen as a commendable artist, in 2004. By employing a historical approach along with a field analysis, this research examined the transformations that had transpired within the Israeli art field, circumscribing Sgan-Cohen's three solo exhibitions. As such, reading critical commentaries discussing the exhibitions and interviewing key characters from within the field, shed light not only on Sgan-Cohen's reception into the Israeli art field, but also illuminated changes within it. Furthermore, focusing on the emergence of postmodern discourse in Israel's social spaces, and its influence on Israeli art dissertation, while framing these findings within the realm of field theory, provided a context for comprehending this changing field. Thus, Sgan-Cohen's three solo exhibitions, spanning a two and a half decade period, served as a case study for disclosing some of the fundamental changes within the Israeli art field, as it came face to face with postmodern discourse. II Table of Contents Introduction …………………………………………………………….…… 1 Chapter One: Michael Sgan-Cohen's Transition from Art Theoretician to Artist……......................................................................................................... 11 Introduction………………………………………………………………… 11 The 1978 Exhibition…………………………………………………..……. 12 Critical Commentary…………………………………………….…………. 16 Sgan-Cohen's Move Towards Judaism…………………………..…………. 32 Chapter Two: Pursuing the Process of Michael Sgan-Cohen's Reception: Transformations in the Israeli Art Field………………………....................... 36 Introduction………………………………………..…………………… 36 The 1994 Exhibition……………………………………..……………... 37 Critical Commentary………………………………………..…………. 40 Summary…………………………………………………..…………..... 57 Epilogue………………………………………………………….... 59 The 2004 Exhibition…………………………………………………..……. 60 Critical Commentary……………………………………………………..… 61 Summary and Conclusion…………………………………….…………….. 68 Bibliography…………………………………………………….…………… 71 List of Artworks……………………………………………….……………... 78 Appendix A: The 1978 Exhibition……………………………………...…… 85 Appendix B: The 1994 Exhibition……………………………………..…….. 99 Appendix C: Artwork by Other Artists………………………….…………... 118 III Introduction ,1978 ,(הנני) ,Fig. 1: Hinneni Print and acrylic on paper and black wooden frame, 27x36 cm. Hinneni (Fig. 1) portrays the word, Hinneni [Hebrew], Here I Am. The letters are printed, while the vowels along with the white mark (or punctum1), seen on the lower left of the image, have been hand painted. This work caught my attention as soon as I saw it, due to its Jewish content employed in a conceptual manner. On the one hand, its minimalistic representation gave me the impression of being rather simple and uncomplicated, yet the more I thought about this piece, and read about it, the more complex it became. That is, "Here I Am", meaning, "Here I am as an artist?" If so, why are the only physical signs of the artist seen through the hand painted vowels and the white blotch? In addition, as this image is framed in thin black wood, it has an association of an obituary 1 David Heyd, "Between Response and Responsiveness: On Michael Sgan-Cohen's "Hinneni"", ed. R. C. Washton Long, M. Baigell, and M. Heyd, Jewish Dimensions in Modern Visual Culture (Hanover: Brandeis University Press, 2009): 273-284, and Amitai Mendelsohn, "Reflective Painting- A Symposiun." Michael Sgan-Cohen: A Retrospective 1976-1999, ed. T. Michelli, (Jerusalem: Israel Museum, 2004) 160-169. 1 notification, as if to say, "Here I am not"2. Furthermore, the concept of Hinneni plays a large role in the biblical story of the Binding of Isaac, and its complicated status is expanded upon by the writing of David Heyd3, a philosopher. And so, this one word conceptual image, with its multiple layers of meaning, led me to further contemplation and fascination with Michael Sgan-Cohen's art. As such, I was somewhat surprised to read the writing of Amitai Mendelsohn, head curator for the Israel Museum, as he described the Israeli art field's initial reaction to Sgan-Cohen's art: In 1978…his [Sgan-Cohen's] first solo exhibition opened at Hakibbutz Gallery in Tel Aviv… these works were received in Israel "like creatures from another planet who had stumbled into the country by accident,4" this was due…to their direct engagement with Judaism, in a Modernist, American, contemporary style….the Hakibbutz exhibition did not arouse much critical comment, with the exception of an important article by art critic Adam Baruch5,who followed Sgan-Cohen's career and facilitated his acceptance on the Israeli art scene6. After reading Mendelsohn's comment, I was riddled with questions – why did the Israeli art field react to Sgan-Cohen's art as foreign objects? How was the practice of conceptual art comprehended (or not) at the time? Why was the referencing of Judaism problematic? And finally, why, and in what way did 2 Mendelsohn, Symposium, 164. 3 Heyd, Response, 273-284. 4 Itamar, Levi, "Painting with Your Hands in Your Pocket," Michael Sgan-Cohen Paintings 1978 - To Date (Tel-Aviv: Museum Ramat Gan,1984) 9. 5 Adam Baruch, "Hayofi Hachadash, V'hacharada Hastuma," [Hebrew], "The New Beauty and the Ambiguous Anxiety," Yediot Achronot 5 Jan. 1979: 7. 6 Amitai Mendelsohn, "The Bible in Primary Colors," Michael Sgan-Cohen: A Retrospective, ed. T. Michelli (Jerusalem: The Israel Museum, 2004) 171. 2 Michael Sgan-Cohen need assistance for his work to find its place within the Israeli art field? The discrepancy between my immediate engagement with Sgan- Cohen's work, and the field's perception of the same art as, "creatures from another planet", triggered the research presented in this thesis. Michael Sgan-Cohen (1944 - 1999), was born in Jerusalem, on the outskirts of Rachavia, in Kfar Shmuel/Talbiah, to German-born parents. His father Meir was a renowned doctor and personal physician to the Israeli president - Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, his mother Ruth was an amateur artist. Rachavia was populated by white collar professionals – doctors and professors of the upper middle class7. In this reality Michael Sgan-Cohen grew up. He graduated from Leyada – a highly regarded private school in Jerusalem8, and went on to serve as an officer for the Israeli intelligence. After reading art history and philosophy at the Hebrew University, he moved to California in 1969 to further his education, graduating with an M.A. in art history from UCLA. Relocating to New York, Sgan-Cohen continued his studies, completing his Ph.D. in art history from CUNY in 1989 and returned to live in Israel in 1987, two years prior to completing his dissertation. In parallel to advancing his education, Sgan-Cohen worked in several areas of the art field. He taught at Brooklyn College in New York, Bezalel College of Art in Jerusalem, and Haifa University. He worked as an art critic for various newspapers and art magazines in Israel and abroad - Ha’aretz, Kav, Art 7 Amnon Ramon, Doctor Mul Doctor Gar, [Hebrew], Doctor Opposite Doctor Lives, (Jerusalem: Yad Yishak Ben Zvi, 1988). 8 "Leyada,"- is a Hebrew University High School‎, (literally "next to"), a semi-private high school established in 1935 by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. 3 Forum, Art in America and Shishi, and served

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