Lea Nikel
Encyclopedia
Lea Nikel was an Israeli abstract artist.
in 1918. Her family immigrated to British-administered Palestine in 1920. She had one sister, Sara (Bock), who was born in 1926. She began studying with painter Chaim Gliksberg
in Tel Aviv
in 1935, later studying with Yechezkel Streichman and Avigdor Steimatsky. From 1961 to 1977, Nikel lived in Greenwich Village (one year), Rome (three years) and New York (four years), before returning to Israel in 1977. She was married to Sam Leiman and had one daughter, Ziva Hanan. She lived in Moshav Kidron
.
organized a retrospective exhibition of her paintings in 2005. Nikel continued to paint until just a few days before her death in September 2005.
Biography
Lea Nikel (Lea Nikelsberg) was born in Zhitomir, UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
in 1918. Her family immigrated to British-administered Palestine in 1920. She had one sister, Sara (Bock), who was born in 1926. She began studying with painter Chaim Gliksberg
Chaim Gliksberg
Chaim Gliksberg was born to Rabbi Shimon Yaakov Gliksberg and Cypa Mejta, daughter of Rabbi Mordechai Dovid Alpert.When he was 2 years old his family moved to Odessa. He attended cheder and the Odessa yeshiva....
in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
in 1935, later studying with Yechezkel Streichman and Avigdor Steimatsky. From 1961 to 1977, Nikel lived in Greenwich Village (one year), Rome (three years) and New York (four years), before returning to Israel in 1977. She was married to Sam Leiman and had one daughter, Ziva Hanan. She lived in Moshav Kidron
Kidron
Kidron may refer to:*Qatra, thought to be the biblical site of Kidron mentioned in the first Book of Maccabees*Kidron Valley, a valley near Jerusalem.*Kidron, Israel, a small moshav near Gedera, which is named after the stream flowing through Kidron Valley...
.
Artistic career
Nikel held her first solo exhibition at Chemerinsky Art Gallery in Tel Aviv and her first solo show in Paris at Galerie Colette Allendy in 1957. She took part in numerous international group exhibitions, including the Venice Biennale in 1964. The Tel Aviv Museum of ArtTel Aviv Museum of Art
The Tel Aviv Museum of Art is an art museum in Tel Aviv, Israel. It was established in 1932 in a building that was the home of Tel Aviv's first mayor, Meir Dizengoff. The Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art opened in 1959. The museum moved to its current location on King Saul Avenue in...
organized a retrospective exhibition of her paintings in 2005. Nikel continued to paint until just a few days before her death in September 2005.
Artistic style
Nikel's style was a form of expressionistic abstraction sometimes called lyrical abstraction. She painted with a brusque, generous touch and favored high-keyed colors. She was known for buoyant compositions consisting of rough-edged blocks of color and scribbly, calligraphic lines that together conveyed a sense of imaginative excitement and urgent sensuousness.Awards
- In 1982, Nikel was awarded the Dizengoff PrizeDizengoff PrizeThe Dizengoff Prize for Painting and Sculpture is awarded annually by the Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality since 1937.The following is a table of Dizengoff Prize laureates in their respective art form:...
for Painting. - In 1995, she was awarded the Israel PrizeIsrael PrizeThe Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
, for painting. - In 1997, she was made a Chevalier of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture.