Idit Aharon:
These two lovely portrayals of singing birds, done by Idit, was the latest
additions
to our art collection and have been gifted to my daughter and her husband.
They are museum quality pieces, full of life and exquisite color. When I
purchased them, a hush went about the room, because they are such a
special and unique pair of Idit Arahon works. I am happy to have added
these two works for family members to cherish in the generations to come.
I am sure Idit will do this theme again. I am also sure it will never likely
to be quite this wonderful.
Idit actually panicked a bit when she sold them, as they didn't have her
normal large signature, but she signed and dated them on the back, making
them that much more unique. If I wasn't a friend, I'd probably never had
gotten my hands on these. *** THEY NOT FOR SALE****
Tzfat Artist and Israeli Success Story
Idit Aharon is one of the true gems of the Tzfat community and the art world at large. She was born
into a disadvantaged lifestyle, plagued by poverty, a broken home. Her mother was plagued by mental
illness, and her father had limited resources to apply to the family.
From this childhood, she rose from a troubadour existence, living from Kibbutz to Kibbutz, until the
eigth grade, when without direction, Idit dropped out of 8th grade to live alone in the Tel-Aviv area.
Slowly Idit, with the help of her art, grew strength. She was accepted to Avni School for Higher Art
Education where she received a full scholarship. After a short period of time in Holland, she returned
to Israel and her Jewish Roots, becoming Baalat Teshuva at the age of 24. She married and set art
career aside for a successful marriage fruitful with 8 children.
As the children grew, Idit returned to her art working as a faculty, painting and lecturing at the
Art Studies Department of Safed College. She eventually set up an art gallery in the Artists Quarter
of Tzfat, which has been a great success.
Idit being interviewed and having some fun talking
about her history, her art, and many of the current works she has on display
and for sale in her gallery
Idit, a women of love and faith, brings the fluidity of her entire life experience to every print and
painting. Tzfat's premier colorist, she specialized in Jewish themes, and creates works of art with
deep positive meanings. One can add to one's household the positive effect of her art to all who enter your
homes and offices. Much of the 20th Century artists had spent much time trying to separate "art" from beauty
and aesthetic. Even today we continue to see this trend in much of the art world. Perhaps they have a point
but I think by an large they miss the purpose of art. Who wants that vulgarity, anger and even empty
works of art in their living environment? Give me something soulful, beautiful, heartwarming, and pleasing to
the eye and my inner eye! Give me a reason to stop and look twice, and to walk away with a smile and a
nodding head. And this is where Idit excels.
Her art is cheerful, positive, thoughtful, and enhances your life without insulting your intelligence.
Often imitated, her life affirming themes of the Tree of Life, Hasma, Tzfat
landscapes, Jewish life, romance and family, can never be truly reproduced and Ms Aharon's eye for
color and form are truly unique. This is not manic and depressing work of an artist taking out their
frustration on the world. Idit celebrates life in every painting and print. It is always worth finding an
original Idit Aharon work, as the color has a depth and emotional content that is truly unique to her bush.
Her works have become a staple of Jewish art across the globe, presented in homes, offices and
synagogues everywhere. An original Idit Aharon is the high light of anyone's original art collection.
Find her gallery mere foot falls from the Yosef Caro Synagogue. The art reflects the environment that
it was created in.
Idit draws much of her inspiration from the environs
and culture of Tzfat as you can see with the Rimons and Kabalistic themes that
pervade her works. While the Kasma and Rimon are common themes, Idit's use of
pastel color and chaotic design heighten these themes to new art, lifting them out of
mundane replication of the same trop over and over. This mastepiece of
color was sold in short order from the gallery in 2016
Owning an original Idit Aharon work of art, whether it be oils, prints, or mixed media, is
essential for any modern collector of Jewish Themed art. Her work is often imitated, but
getting your hands on a genuine piece is worth the premium. Her color technique and artistic
eye, like most master artists, is unique. Any superficial reproductions of her style will leave
the viewer at a loss, as her unique personal touch is palatable in all her works. Her personality
informs all her works and she produces a steady stream of masterpieces, and smaller works.
Her originals are available at quite affordable prices, and are increasing in value on the resale
market. Many more commoditized pieces are also available. Similar to Rembrandt, who had so many
students copying his works for sale with his signature and collaborating in the painting of his
original works such that even today the Rembrandt Group can not be certain what was an original
painted by the master, what was a composite with his studio artists assistance and what was solely
by the masters hand, Idit uses modern technique to product mixed media pieces of her own designs
in less expensive format that are personalized and available off the shelf for a few hundred dollars,
that sit side by side of her most more expensive original oil paintings that sell bristly for thousands.
Unlike Rembrandt, however, you can be assured that every work you buy from her is authentically hers,
and not an inferior student. And unlike Chagal and Picasso, she doesn't just sell mechanized
lithographs and prints. Every piece, small or large, expensive or not, is touched by the artists hand
and personalized.
The Abstract mixed media work dubbed "Creation" is the earliest
of Idit Aharon's works which I purchased. It has been hanging in my gallery since
2012. The painting which is quite large, nearly 30+ inches long, was stored on
the airplane heading back to New York in the overhead bin. I've had on sale for
$5000, and several offers for it over $4000. But the secret is that Idit reworks
with design frequently, making minor alterations and touches to the original
to give each version a fresh take. But she has them available for much less
than mine in NYC.
This is her most abstract work and it churns with quite organically almost giving
an illusion of earthly gravity and shape when there is none. Hence the title which
is a reference to Bereishits, a world of astonishing void and confusion in the birth
throes of the creating of the world. It's quite an impressive piece that commands
a space.
This Bronze image of two sisters is one of the great Aharon creations and is available in mix media with
printed designs. It has the star location in my Gallery's livingroom, above the Italian leather Sofa where
it catches sun light from the windows and just glows. Van Gogh said of Franz Hals, "How many colors of black
can the master create on a canvas". Likewise here, one is caught in rapture as Idit layers a seemingly
unending number of bronze and gold into these portraits, with splashes of greens and reds to lift the image
off its black background with a sculptured effect. And yet, this image is warm, not cold and metallic. The
color is layered on an extraordinary ink design with abstract forms sprinkled through out the composition,
through the hair and the middle space. The effect recalls Grecian red-bodied Nolan amphora or the Red-figure
hydria. It is elegant and a relatively inexpense purchase from her gallery. My mixed media piece is nicely
framed in a matching gold and green matted frame and I have it on sale for $3000. I believe it is the best
version that she has created of this design. She likely has less expensive examples in her
gallery as she often under prices her works when
you buy directly from her.
These two more affordable works by Idit Aharon was prints on Canvas, often
with hand touches to individualize them. She sells them for less than $100 in person and
on her online Gallery.
Despite there low price point, they are two of my favorite
pieces and I purchased them framed from her in Tfzat. They are
a little over a foot in length, making them perfect for small
apartments, offices and even bedrooms. I resold one in Brooklyn
for $300, and the other is still on my wall.
These two works are deeply rooted in Tzfat, one of the alley of
near the Abuhov Synagogue which is just down the hill from Idit's
Gallery. The other is a stylized Olive Tree, such as the ones
that grow all about the city and in the surrounding countryside.
Both designs, which were pioneered more than 15 years ago, have a lovely
balance, and have the illusion of being tiled as if on a separate parchment.
The effect creates a lovely frame and pushed these abstract works into our
real world. They give an illusion as if you are like Alice, entering the
looking glass, which is very much the experience that travelers have when
they come to Tfzat. The geography is so extreme and the people so earnestly
wrapped up in spirituality, that one does feel as they entered a different
plane of reality. And it is obvious why Tzfat is Judaism's fourth holy city,
the city of Air and Kabalah. And in this regard, perhaps the prints are
representation of realism and we are otherwise living in the illusion.
Idit Aharon - Tree $3000
Idit Aharon - Safed Alley $3000
This fantastic work is discussed in our video where Idit explains that the painting breaks out of
its frame to express a lack of limits and freedom. It is one of a pair of large peices with
wonderful use of a sculptured background that is reminiscent of Vemeer's background in the Milk Maid.
The swirling subtle cobalt blues give the contrasting strokes of the golden trees more pop as it
almost floats off the canvass. Last I saw, Idit still had this masterpiece in Gallery along with
its sister painting. Get them both. I wish I could.
This large piece of the common theme of a Hamsa gives Idit
an entire subset of canvass to stretch her design talents and color themes.
Her variety of embedded Rimon and Dagim produce works that are not just variations of
this common Tzfat theme, but creative new unique works that clearly show her
hand. This one has predominant pastel gold and greens around a swirling design and
a abstract frame about the edge. All of this is overlayed by a tiling effect with
tints of color that give one the illusion of looking through a mystic window of
magic color, trimmed with an occasional string of pearl beards and white linen
like stitching, all of which is just paint.
The mythical Olive Tree also done through the lens of the
magical tiling and fractal imaging. This tree also breaks into the matting around
the image, refusing to be contained, while taking root on the bottom. There is much symbolism
to the composition.
This extraordinary ink shows off Idit's amazing design skills. I am
partial to ink works, as I have collected inks and pencils and worked in the media for a number
of years. Usually, such designs take a backseat to the colors of oils, but the design work
that Idit does can be fully flushed out with just the bitonal modality that ink gives. This is
the base design that she uses in other works, the Tree of Life with two hidden faces. The
design in used as well in her mixed media works such as in the video. But the stylized
tree and the fantastical leaves work even better with ink where you can more clearly see
the intricacies of the design. Great work.
This is a sister Hamsa to the one above with different tonality and
stronger framing and different pearls. With blue tonality and a broader range of color being
used, the Rimon decoratively stands out for a bolder look. The illusion of falling leaves
in the background give this image a harvest feel, still behind a mystical screen of tiled
windows.
This wonderful take on the still life theme and botanical
works of the past, this image has bold experimentation in color with small amounts of
oranges, and complementary greens in the fantastical flowers overflow with energy from
the lovely turquoise vase. Hints of astronomical phenomena, fruit and Rimons nicely
round out with wonderful and balanced composition. A bird sneaks in on the far left and
very much like Chagal (another Tzfat artist from years past), Jewish iconography
sneaks into the composition that suggests movement and calmness all at once.
This fanciful image that represents Yerushaliam and the Kotel has been
done by many artists of differing skills and variations of this theme is always popular. But the
landscape in the hands of Idit has all her color energy dominated with the playful colored roofs
beyond the wall. The two trees give a hint of a formal gate which is open to the world, and
frame to door that hints at being open, begging the viewer to peek through. Idit applies
her mystical window to this work, but the light blue leaves seem to break through that
layer, giving further dimensionality to the work. The building on the right with a roof that
looks as much as a hat as a roof and perched at a 45 degree angle is comedic and give the composition
the overall feeling of friendliness.
What is not to love about this painting. It is just a warm, friendly and happy larger piece that can
nicely compliment of Shabbat Dining room table and make company feel welcome in your home.
The Rooster is a common artist theme going back centuries. The
combination of bright colors, and strutting personality make these birds ideal for
artists to practice their technique and to explore their palette and design. In addition,
especially in pre-Industrial society, Roosters were everywhere, familiar and symbolic of
male virility, and often used by Chagal as such for his works, and are on Greek coins of
the 5th Century BCE, Greek Potery of the 6th Century BCE,
ancient Roman mosaics,
Chinese Ink work of the 20th Century ,
18th Century Japanese Scrolls ,
Brazilian Art of the early 20th century ,
Iraq in 2001 ,
and traditional arts from Cuba and Mexico . It is fair to say the
motif is worldwide and throughout history. But that doesn't take anything from Idit Aharon's two major
designs around Roosters. The first is on the top of this page, of a Rooster strutting with a hen in the
background. The one picture was purchased by me and has now passed to other hands and I think is the finest
example of this mixed media design that she made, with exquisite representation of the sun in a fantastic
multicolored pastel sky that melts into the earth without a formal ground line.
The other work is this more stylized Rooster with flamboyant strips of color with red, Turquoise,
bright green, and a bright deep red coxcomb, colors tinted through the mystic glass, and flying
feathers and action lines to provide movement to the picture. It is just a stunning work and
very large, among her largest works and can fill a room with this sophisticated and commanding
bird.
Smile Idit - that Tree shows all your skills as an artist of Color and design
This lovely triptych is one of my favorites in the Aharon Gallery. The color is lovely combination
of contrast and similarities, with the gentle movement of a darker green-blue, to a brighter background
away from the center and toward the left. The ground line disapears accept for the roots, and the
suggestion of cirrus clouds and gentle wind sweeps of the leaves and blossoms gently into the air just
as one might expect as you gently blow on a dandelion.
This canvas print landscape is very different from much of Idit's other works and it has shadows
and a touch of realism that Idit normally ignores. The pixilated sky is created with the dabbing
of a broad brush and simulates the illusion of stars as it mixes into the tree line on the
right and the tree on the left. Color builds the cityscape and the wall with generous bush lines,
and patterns of shade and pastel color. My feeling about this composition is that it needs a
small cat walking on top of the wall. Jerusalem is filled with cats.
This third Hamsa listed on the page is full sized as well, and I believe it was sold just before I
returned to New York. It's deep purple molded background confronts the flatter design of this example
which has many linear motifs. The affect is to have a more unified look for the Hamsa itself as it seems
to lay in real space with a stylized Rimon in the palm and two dagim and eyes in the fingers. The overall
affect is nearly like a Native American Totem cut into wood. The gold and red nicely offset the design,
and mike it very enjoyable to look at. There is no mystic tiles in this example, providing that much
realism, as if the Hamsa is a real object that can be touched or even lifted off the purple background.
This is an outstanding example of this basic design and would fit nicely in anyone's livingroom.
The tree on the right we already discussed above. Now you can see it as it
might exist compared to other works of art. The fine portrait on right is a
tronie of an idealized Jewish women. The colors, as usual, are extraordinary
and there is a hint of light brown hair with stylized additions of blue, pink,
and green tones.
These last to compositions are magnificent in design and color. They are deeply spiritual and
feminine, creating overlayed emotional components in the complex color blends veering into psychedelic
art, almost detaching from reality and entering their own plan. They are more than a dreamlike state
and they have aspirational feelings in them. On the top in the lower right one can find a city with
its wall embedded into the composition, a Rimon for an earring, and roots coming from the neck. The
lower one is more pastel and relaxed, with a dove nicely slipped into the center of the image, and clear
shapely breasts, perhaps representing motherhood, or perhaps a touch of eroticism for its own sake. It
also has the city gently added to the orange field of the painting, barely noticeable unless you look closely.
see above..