The Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art annually grants a series of awards dedicated to directly supporting Israeli artists. These awards aim to foster meaningful dialogue, promote the creation of new cultural bridges, and cultivate professional connections that inspire, advance, and sustain Israeli art.
The Lauren & Mitchell Presser Contemporary Art Grant is awarded annually to support excellence in contemporary art in Israel, and to reflect the rich and multifaceted nature of local society and culture. The grant promotes diverse artistic voices and places confidence in the work of museums across the country. Each year, the donors select one solo exhibition from the museum’s annual program, featuring an artist residing in Israel, and the grant contributes to bringing the exhibition vision to life.
Keshet Award for Contemporary Art, founded by the Bar-Gil Avidan Family, is awarded every two years and supports a solo exhibition at the museum for an artist, selected by an international guest curator. The award aims to foster meaningful dialogue, promote the creation of new cultural bridges, and cultivate professional connections that inspire, advance, and sustain Israeli art.
The Discount Artistic Encouragement Award is presented annually at the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art to an Israeli artist. The recipient is chosen by the ‘Discount Bank Art Committee’ from among the artists featured in the museum’s planned exhibitions for that year.
Amid the challenges of the Corona crisis, the Herzliya Museum Association, with the generous support of the Prof. Michael Adler Foundation, launched the ‘Corona Diaries’ project. This initiative involved acquiring a series of works on paper that document experiences during the pandemic, aiming to both support the Israeli art community and preserve a historical capsule of creative work from this unique period in the museum’s collection.
Following a call for applications for the HaPais Incubators for Art and Design, seven artists were chosen to participate in the program under the guidance of curator Sally Haftel-Naveh. The selected artists’ exhibitions were showcased at the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art as part of the “Beyond Somewhere” group exhibition in 2022.
EMDA’s generosity enabled the provision of a three-year scholarship, which facilitated the promotion, encouragement, and training of a new generation of curators through a one-year internship program.