Jacov Wexler

Israeli 1912-1995

“In abstract art I feel the spirit…there is no art outside time”

—Jacov Wexler

Known for his linear, abstract compositions, Latvian born Jacov Wexler studied at the Academy of Fine Art in Hamburg before immigrating to Eretz-Israel (Palestine) in 1935. Affected at first by the German Expressionist movement, artists like the famed Rouault had an impact on Wexler’s figurative work and he embraced the Art Informel movement as his style moved gradually toward the abstract.

From 1948, Wexler became a founding member of the “New Horizons” group, one of Israel’s first leading art movements, its focus on experimental abstract expression. He was the head of the Avni Institute in Tel Aviv where he taught art and design from 1966-1984.

Jacov Wexler’s first one-man exhibition in Tel Aviv in 1948 was followed by many more solo and group exhibitions both in Israel and abroad— Brazil’s Famous Sao Paulo Art Biennial in 1953 and the Graphics Biennale, held in Tokyo in 1960, for example.

The works of this important Israeli artist, found in collections around the world, are still highly valued and searched for today.