Ilana Shafir

Ilana Shafir was an Israeli mosaic artist from Ashkelon, known for a technique called spontaneous mosaic.

1924 to 2014Spontaneous mosaic techniqueFounding the Ashkelon art centerWorks for Ashkelon mosaic garden

Occupation: architect, artist
Education: Academy of Fine Arts, University of Zagreb

Ilana Shafir was born in 1924 in Sarajevo

Ilana Shafir was born on 21 March 1924 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. During World War II her family fled to a small village, where local people protected them. She drew the villagers and later drew maps for the partisans, whom she joined.

After the war she studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb. In 1949 she moved to Israel and settled in Ashkelon. She first painted in immigrant transit camps and tried several techniques.

She came to focus on mosaic and worked without a prior drawing, letting each piece take shape during the work. She made mosaic murals for public buildings and founded the Ashkelon art center, which she directed from 1970 to 1985. Her work was shown in Israel, Italy and Japan, and she taught workshops abroad, including in Brazil, the United States and Scotland.

She was named an honored citizen of Ashkelon in 1986 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Society of American Mosaic Artists. She died on 12 April 2014 in Ashkelon. Her son Giora keeps her home, which holds her paintings, ceramics and mosaics.