Arriving on the famous ship Ruslan, he first visited Safed in 1919, the city where he built his house in 1934. In 1920, he established the Hatomer art cooperative in Jaffa and created a studio at the Herzliya gymnasium offering evening classes in painting and sculpture. He participated in the first art exhibition in Mandatory Palestine, presenting his innovative abstract paintings.
In the late 1920s, he traveled to Egypt and then continued his studies in Paris at the École des Beaux-Arts and the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, studying under Matisse and Bourdelle. In 1924, the recognition of Piet Mondrian, who acquired two of his works, testified to the quality of his work.
Returning to Palestine in 1925, he founded two art studios, Masad and Eged, as well as the Histadrut painting studio in Tel Aviv, transmitting Parisian influence to notable students such as Shimshon Holtzman and Avigdor Stemastky. His style evolved towards expressionism during a further stay in Paris in 1929.
Having settled permanently between Tel Aviv and Safed in 1934, he contributed to the decorations for the Adloyada carnival and collaborated with the Haohel Theatre until 1949, creating portraits of famous actors. Between 1934 and 1948, he received several Dizengoff Prizes and his paintings documented the founding events of Israel, notably the first meeting of the Knesset.
In 1949, he founded an artists' colony in Safed, which became an art academy. Returning to Paris in 1952, he created glasswork for Baroness Alix de Rothschild and established himself among the Jewish artists of the School of Paris. From 1960 to 1981, he exhibited internationally, dividing his time between Paris and Safed. His home became the Frenkel Frenel Museum in 1972, before he died in Tel Aviv and was buried in Safed.
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Sonnet 4
