Israeli artist Yaacov Agam dies at 98

Yaacov Agam, the Israel Prize-winning artist and one of the founders of kinetic art, died at the age of 98. Born Yaacov Gibstein in 1918 to a religious family, he took part in the struggle against the British Mandate and was arrested during the Black Sabbath roundup.

Agam studied art at Bezalel in Jerusalem, as well as in Zurich and Paris. His religious upbringing strongly shaped his work, and he believed art should express constant becoming. Although he has lived in Paris since the 1950s, he had a major influence on art and public spaces in Israel.

Among his best-known works are the “Fire and Water” fountain at Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv, which combines water, fire and music under computerized control, the facade of the Dan Hotel in Tel Aviv, and the world’s largest menorah in Manhattan, New York. He also created large-scale works such as “The March of Time” at the Tel Aviv Museum.

Over his long career, Agam received many awards and honors. About three months ago, he was awarded the Israel Prize for visual arts. The city of Rishon LeZion opened the Yaacov Agam Museum of Art in his honor in 2017, and France decorated him with high honors including Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters and, in 2022, Knight of the Legion of Honour.