Painting, sculpture and video are among the forms bringing contemporary works to life in one of the largest art museums in Israel.
The Haifa Museum of Art is the area’s principal gallery devoted to modern works. Having been started several decades ago in the City Hall, the museum is today beautifully laid out within the historic walls of a stone building dating back to the 1930s. Study the myriad pieces of Israeli and international contemporary art that adorn the galleries.
Make your way through the impressive permanent collection, which features artworks by modern-art master Joseph Zaritsky and abstract innovator Lea Nikel, among the many other prominent Israeli visionaries. The site also hosts temporary exhibits that often critique, satirize and reflect on modern society.
The museum has more than 7,500 works of art covering various movements. See the paper pieces by André Masson and Chana Orloff. Other sections titled Sculpture, Film/Video and Installation offer a wide-ranging appreciation of contemporary art. Bring your whole family to one of the displays aimed at children or consider attending a lecture by an esteemed artist or critic.
Consider the intriguing history of the 1930s building, which formerly served as an Anglican school for girls and an immigration center. It was later a high school and an adult-study institute. The museum itself was founded in 1951 and is part of the six Haifa Museums, which also include the Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art and the National Maritime Museum.
Opening hours are Friday through Wednesday, from morning until afternoon and Thursday only in the evenings. There is a fee for entrance, with discounts available for students, seniors and kids.
Find the Haifa Museum of Art in the Wadi Nisnas district in the downtown part of the city. Take a bus to one of the many surrounding stops or ride to the Haifa Center railway station, a little northeast of the museum. While here, investigate other surrounding attractions including the Shrine of the Báb, Shlomo Square and Paris Square.
