Avner Ben-Gal (Hebrew: אבנר בן-גל; August 26, 1966 – May 9, 2024) was an Israeli international painter and artist, working mainly from Tel Aviv, Israel. His works depict various intense, often neglected locations such as agricultural fields, prisons and smoky interiors, whereby theatrical scenes play out. The scenes present ghostly, rough hewn and often low life figures that are bare and hardened. The parallel between Ben-Gal's raw way of painting and his tough, ambiguous subject matter allows a unique intensity within his paintings.
Biography
Avner Ben-Gal was born on 26 August 1966. He studied Fine Art at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Jerusalem in 1993. Ben-Gal was the subject of solo shows at museums such as the Tel Aviv Museum of Art (2002, 2009); Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Basel, Switzerland (2008); and Sudden Poverty at the Aspen Art Museum, Colorado, United States (2007); and he has participated in various group shows, including DARK at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, and as part of the Venice Biennial, 2003. A number of books have been published on his work, notably a catalogue to accompany his 2008 show in Basel.
Ben-Gal was later represented by Sadie Coles HQ London, Bortolami Gallery, New York, CFA Gallery, Berlin and by Tempo Rubato gallery, Tel Aviv. He died from a heart attack on 9 May 2024, at the age of 57.
Prizes and awards
2001
Residency program at The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, New York (NY), USA
1998
Minister of Education and Cultural Prize, Israel
1996
Kollner award for excellent young artists, Bezalel Academy, Jerusalem, Israel
1993 Mary Fischer award for excellent young artists, Bezalel Academy, Jerusalem, Israel
