Shmuel Ben David

Portrait of a Woman

Shmuel Ben David, or Shabat Menahem Davidov (1884–1927) born in Sofia, Bulgaria was an llustrator, painter, typographer, and designer from the Bezalel school art movement, active in Jerusalem.

Biography

Ben David studied under Boris Schatz at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Sofia. In 1906, he immigrated to Jerusalem when Schatz founded the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts. He was the first student to become a teacher in the Tapestry Department of Bezalel. Ben David devoted much of his artistic endeavor to research and design of Hebrew typography; his preoccupation with the Hebrew alphabet brought forth an extensive lexicon of ornamentation. In 1912, the artist traveled to Paris and continued his art studies at the Academie Julian and left a collection of sketch books.^[1] In 1920 Ben David was one of the founders of the Aguddat Ommanim Ivrit (Association of Hebrew Artists). He organized the Association’s first exhibition and was its first chairman. Around 1923 Ben David produced a unique copy of an illuminated Scroll of Esther, made of parchment.^[2]
He died in Jerusalem in 1927 and rests in the Mount of Olives Cemetery.^{[3][4][5][6][7]}

See also

• Bezalel school

References

External links

• Shmuel Ben David on Artnet
• Artworks by Shmuel Ben David on Mutualart