Boris Schatz

Place: Varniai

Born: 1867

Death: 1932

Biography:

Boris Chatz (בוריס שלמה ברוך שץ), born on December 23, 1867 in Varniai, Lithuania and died on March 23, 1932 in Denver, Colorado, was a Russian Jewish artist and sculptor. He is considered one of the founding fathers of Israeli art. Chatz studied painting and sculpture at various academies before moving to France where he continued his studies with Mark Antokolski and Fernand Cormon. In 1895, after being noticed for his work Matityahou l' Hasmonéen at the Universal Exhibition of Paris in 1889, Chatz was officially invited by Prince Ferdinand to Bulgaria where he became a professor at the National Academy of Arts and created several important works. In 1906, Chatz founded the Bezalel School of Art in Jerusalem, which played an important role in the development of Israeli art.