BIOGRAPHY

“Azaz has no emotional or sentimental attitude to materials – he conceives in whatever material he uses.”
Grosvenor Gallery, London, 1965

KEY DATES

Here you can view a timeline of key dates and events in the career of Nehemia Azaz.

CHRONOLOGY

1923 Born Berlin. October 9, taken to Palestine at the age of 3 months. Educated Palestine.
1946 Apprenticed to stonemason, Bologna, Italy.
1947 Apprenticed to sculptor & stained-glass maker, Amsterdam, Holland.
1949-50 Studied part-time at Grand Chaumiere, Paris, France.
1953-4 Studied ceramic chemistry, Holland.
1954-5 Worked in pottery – London, UK.
1955 Ceramic sculptures included in exhibition with LS Lowry and Josef Herman at Wakefield Art Gallery.
1955-59 Founded & managed “Harsa” ceramic art factory and training school, Beersheva; designed forms and glazes for production.
1957 First architectural artwork, using local and found materials, Beersheva.
1960 First large scale architectural art commission to receive international media attention, Sheraton Hotel, Tel Aviv.
1962/3 First architectural art commissions in USA – Spertus Museum of Judaica and Loop Synagogue, Chicago.
1963-65 Artist in Residence, Carmel College, Oxford, UK.
1965 Established studio base in UK.
1972/3 Created large scale sculpture for The Israeli Lounge, The John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Washington, D.C.
1965-2008 Lived & worked in the UK, whilst undertaking commissions in Israel, US and Europe.
2008 Died 28 October.

EXHIBITIONS

Exhibitions – Group & One Man Shows
1955 Wakefield Gallery, Wakefield – with LS Lowry and Josef Herman
1956 Exhibition of Art Ceramics; Rina Gallery, Jerusalem. With Pnina Amir and Chana Frank
1956 Mikra Studio, Tel-Aviv
1956 The Traclin Art Gallery, Haifa
1959 The Traclin Art Gallery, Haifa
1959 Chemerinski Gallery, Tel-Aviv
1960 Beit Haam, Beersheva
1965 Grosvenor Gallery, London – Solo
1966 Galerie Semiha Huber, Zurich; Camden Arts Centre, London
1967 Galerie Artek, Helsinki
1987 Metaphors in Bronze and Wood;International Contemporary Art Fair, London
1987 Metaphors in Bronze and Wood; Mabat Art Gallery, Tel Aviv
1994 Julius Gottlieb Gallery, Oxfordshire
Exhibitions – Contributor
1958 Forms of Israel, USA Touring show, American Crafts Council (1958-60)
1959 XVII Concorso Nazionale Della Ceramica, Faenza
1959 Biennale of Sculpture in the Open Air, Museum of Modern Art, Haifa – Curator: Pola Eichenbaum
1962 Everyday Arts and Crafts of Israel, past and present, Oakland Public Museum – Selected by: Judah L. Magnes Museum
1965 Fifty years of Sculpture: Some aspects 1914 – 1964: Grosvenor Gallery, London
1966 Experiment in Form, Grosvenor Gallery, London
1966 Sculpture in a Civic Setting, Swiss Cottage Library, Hampstead Festival – Organised by Jesse Watkins and Charles Spencer
1967 Pavilion of Judaism, Expo 1967, Montreal
1969 An Exhibition of Outdoor Sculpture, Blenheim Palace Garden centre, Woodstock
1973 Summer Exhibition, Villa Mairea, Noormark, Finland
1987 The Beginnings of Israeli Ceramics, Herziliya Museum of Art
2007 Pottery works, 1956-1966, Harsa, Beit Aharon Kahana, Ramat Gan
2013 On the Flip Side, Benyamini Contemporary Ceramics Center, Tel Aviv-Yaffo
2020 Requiem to Harsa, Benyamini Contemporary Ceramics Center, Tel Aviv-Yaffo

LINKS & REFERENCES

Nehemia Azaz’s international career spanned several continents, where he was also known as Henri, Nechemia, Nehemiah and NH Azaz.

CONTACT

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