Dani Karavan
Dani Karavan, is one of Israel’s most outstanding environmental sculptors, who has won numerous awards for his monumental memorials which “blend into the environment” in which they are created. Karavan was born in Israel in 1930 and studied at the acclaimed Bezalal Academy of the Arts in Jerusalem. He began his artistic career in the mid 1950’s after studying Italian fresco technique at the Academia delle Belle Arti in Florence and drawing at the Academie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris.
His is well known for his numerous memorials which include several dedicated to the Holocaust and the 6 million Jews who perished in that terrible episode in history. He has designed sculptures dedicated to life and peace, including his Jerusalem City of Peace sculpture (1964) as well as wall relief works such as his Tree of knowledge to the Tree of life relief; and a special one dealing with the Holocaust. His sculptures, many of them done as special memorial commissions, are on display in a number of countries, including France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Spain, and Switzerland.
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The Monument to the Negev Brigade, who fell defending Israel during the 1948 Arab Israeli War. "Andartat Hativat HaNegev"
An outstanding desert sculpture by the artist, which is dedicated to the path of peace, is his “Way of Peace,” which commemorates Israel’s peaceful relations with Egypt and took four years to complete (1996-2000). The sculpture is located in the Negev desert near Nitzana, Israel. Symbol of the Negev and Beersheba.
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Dani Karavan’s most outstanding environmental contribution, comes from his work in preserving Tel-Aviv’s unique “White City” architecture, which was constructed in the city up to the early 1950’s. The unique and modern international style of many of these buildings resulted in the UNESCO organization proclaiming Tel Aviv’s “White City” as a World Heritage Site in 2003.
Kikar Levana (White Square) 1977-1988 Tel-Aviv, Israel. This white square which is located in a park overlooking the city of Tel-Aviv, is an homage to the pepole who build the city of Tel-Aviv, also called "The White City". In this project Karavan used a vocabulary of basic structures: a tower, a staircase, a pyramid and a dome.
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- Karavan helped to convince then mayor Shlomo Lahat to undergo a program to preserve these buildings, under a restoration program that is still continuing to this day.
- Just a few of Karavan’s many art achievement awards include The Israel Prize (1977) and the Japanese annual Praemium Imperiale Art Award in 1998.
- Known fondly as “BGU” by both students and alumni, the University began as a dream by Israel’s first prime minister David Ben Gurion; who not only dreamed of settling Israel’s harsh desert Negev region, but to provide a top academic institution for the region’s inhabitants as well.
- Since the university opened its doors in 1963, it has graduated thousands of fine young people who have come to study there not only from all over Israel, but from many countries worldwide as well.
- More than 18,000 students are currently enrolled at the University’s campuses, and among the academic and scientific programs being offered include those dealing with environmental science, such as water and global warming, and various forms of alternative and renewable energy at the university’s external campus at Kibbutz Sde Boker.
