America-Israel Cultural Foundation

Edward A. Norman founded the organization in 1939 under the name American Palestine Fund, Inc., to bring together the American committees supporting educational, cultural, and social-service institutions in Palestine, which had previously competed with one another in the United States.[5] For many years, the organization was popularly known as the "Norman Fund" in recognition of its founder.[5]

After changing its name several times, the organization was formally renamed the America-Israel Cultural Foundation in 1957.[5] That same year, Golda Meir received a financial prize from the Jewish Congress as the woman who had contributed most for the Jewish people and declared that she would donate the funds toward AICF scholarships.[6]

A significant strategic shift came in 1956, when the Foundation decided to limit its work exclusively to artistic and cultural activities, stepping back from the broader social-service and educational mandates of its earliest years.[5] A decade later, in 1966, it opened the America-Israel Culture House in New York, which included an Israel art gallery, an Israeli arts-and-crafts center, and rooms for cultural programs, establishing a physical home in the United States for Israeli artistic exchange.[5] In Israel, the Foundation operated through an advisory board.[5]

The America-Israel Cultural Foundation, Inc. is incorporated in New York, and its related Israeli nonprofit — America-Israel Cultural Foundation (R.A.) — was also registered in 1939 and is controlled by the U.S. foundation's board.[1] The organization is funded primarily by contributions from donors in both countries.[1] Its Israel office plays a central operational role by assembling beneficiary projects, awarding scholarships to hundreds of students annually, recommending recipients to the board, and distributing funds to students and projects.[1]

The Foundation's presidency has passed through several prominent figures. Its presidents have included Frederic R. Mann, Samuel Rubin, violinist Isaac Stern, and William Mazer. Vera Stern held the role as of 2005.[5] A 1977 Bezalel Academy bulletin identified Dr. Bernard Mandelbaum as president at that time, with Gideon Paz serving as vice-president.[7] Paz later became a director and discussed the Foundation's evolving work in a 2007 interview.[8] By 2017, Scott Mortman served as chair and described AICF as "one of the oldest foundations in Israel."[9] The board has also included Dr. Sharon Azrieli, a Canadian entrepreneur, philanthropist, and opera singer.[10]

Before narrowing its focus primarily to scholarships and project grants, AICF provided sustained, multi-decade support to many of Israel's foundational cultural institutions. Its records list backing for the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra from 1943 to 1999, the Cameri Theatre from 1943 to 1985, the Habima National Theatre from 1948 to 1974, the Israel Museum from 1959 to 1986, Bezalel Academy of Art and Design from 1960 to 2000, and the Batsheva Dance Company from 1960 to 2000.[11] The Foundation also helped bring art collections from America to Israel, including works for the Billy Rose Sculpture Garden at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.[5]

Isaac Stern established the Concert Network with the Foundation's assistance to foster public chamber-music performances, with particular emphasis on reaching kibbutzim.[12] That network later became the music department of Omanut La'Am ("Art for the People"), a division of the Israeli Ministry of Culture.[12] Gideon Paz, reflecting on the Foundation's early decades, named the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the establishment of Omanut La'am, the Inbal Dance Theatre, the Israeli Chamber Ensemble, Tel Aviv's Culture Hall, and Bezalel in Jerusalem among institutions and initiatives it had helped establish or sustain.[8]

The Foundation's support was not limited to the performing arts. A 1981 art exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum opened under its auspices, documented in a bilingual Hebrew- and English-language record preserved in the Dan Hadani Archive.[13] AICF also published a newsletter titled Hadashot, issued from New York beginning in approximately the 1970s; from 1986 onward, the catalog added the English subtitle "Newsletter."[14] The Foundation supported artist Yair Barak from 2000 to 2003, as noted in his biography in the U.S. Department of State's Art in Embassies program.[15] Pianist and conductor Joyce Rosenzweig performed in recitals throughout North America under the Foundation's sponsorship.[16]

Archival records preserved in the American Jewish Archives provide a detailed window into the Foundation's project-level grantmaking during the 1970s. A December 1976 Bezalel Academy bulletin reported that AICF had provided scholarships on behalf of the Keren Sharet for Young Artists to ten students for the 1976/77 academic year, with the grants totaling IL 36,000 and covering both tuition fees and materials.[7]

The following year, an April 1977 bulletin reported that Vice-President Gideon Paz had announced a grant of IL 60,000 to Bezalel. The majority of that sum was designated for constructing a hydraulic "Ram" press for the Ceramics Department — equipment intended to support the department's commitment to using local raw materials and developing suitable production techniques. The bulletin described the project as having the potential to advance Israel's ceramic industry and reduce foreign-currency spending on imported materials, knowledge, and professionals.[7] These grants illustrate the Foundation's combination of direct student support with investment in Israeli artistic infrastructure.

The Moshe Sharett scholarship program — also referred to as the Creative Excellence Grants — was established in 1955 and has long been regarded as the Foundation's flagship initiative.[3] It awards study scholarships to outstanding young artists in music, dance, visual arts, film, theater, and architecture, with recipients selected through professional auditions conducted by leading artists and teachers in Israel and abroad, many of them former Foundation scholars themselves.[3]

The breadth of disciplines covered is considerable. Annual auditions span ballet and orchestral instruments through jazz, Arab music, acting, photography, fashion, and industrial design.[4] Music and dance recipients typically receive continuing support beginning from around ages 10–13 and extending through ages 21–35, depending on the discipline.[4] Candidates are assessed by three independent judges per field and discipline; approximately 40 judges participate annually across all fields, evaluating around 1,000 auditions each year.[4] The Foundation describes the awards both as financial assistance for demanding study and as formal recognition of a young artist's abilities and future prospects.[4]

By 2007, the Sharett program comprised approximately 1,100 different scholarships annually, with the Foundation operating on an annual budget of roughly $2.5 million.[8] The program represented, in the words of former director Gideon Paz, the Foundation's principal work by that period.[8] In its 2021 activity report, AICF recorded 472 Creative Excellence grants awarded that year, with eligible artists ranging in age from 10 to 35.[17] Musicians received grants in two-year cycles and were divided into groups that re-auditioned every other year, given the size of the music cohort.[17] In 1957, the program received a notable boost in public profile when Golda Meir pledged prize money she had received to fund AICF scholarships.[6]

The Foundation's own cumulative figures state that more than 18,000 artists have benefited from the program across its history.[4] Reported annual scholarship counts have shifted over time — from approximately 1,100 in 2007 to more than 600 in later accounts — reflecting figures reported during different periods.[8][18]

Alongside its domestic scholarship work, AICF operates a Study Abroad program for Israeli artists in music, dance, and visual arts who have demonstrated high achievement in Israel and gained admission to leading conservatories or universities internationally.[19] The Foundation names institutions such as the Berklee College of Music, Juilliard, the Royal Academy of Music, Belas Artes, and the Hanns Eisler School of Music Berlin among those where supported artists have studied.[19]

In 2021, AICF awarded 24 study-abroad grants to exceptional Israeli musicians selected from 66 applicants, with individual grants reaching up to $8,500 and assessed on both excellence and financial need.[17] Study destinations that year included Juilliard in New York, the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin, the Paris Conservatoire, and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.[17]

The Aviv Competitions have been held since 1999 to advance outstanding Israeli musicians at the early stages of professional careers.[20] Competitors perform before professional judges, critics, and audiences, gaining exposure and access to industry members and media, with the Foundation describing the competitions as a gateway to performance opportunities and radio broadcasts both in Israel and abroad.[20]

For the 2022 competition, 29 musicians ages 21–33 competed across piano, cello, brass, and voice; winners in each category received a $6,000 prize, performance opportunities, professional mentoring, and a recording prize.[20] The 2024 competition drew 28 contestants aged 21–30 competing in piano, viola, violin, and woodwinds, with winners announced at an event at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.[21] Category winners that year included Itamar Feinberg, Michael Shaham, Noga Shaham, and Doron Hazan; Doron Hazan and Elad Navon also received the Outstanding Performance of an Israeli Work Prize.[21]

Recognizing that access to quality instruments is itself a barrier to artistic development, AICF assembled an instrument collection through donations from institutions and individual donors in Israel and abroad.[17] Its lending program provides promising musicians without the means to purchase a quality instrument with access to instruments on loan. The 2021 activity report valued the instrument bank at $5.5 million and noted that 89 percent of it — representing $4.9 million in instruments — was in musicians' hands that year.[17] Some instruments in the collection date to the 18th century, with individual values exceeding $1 million.[17] By the end of 2023, the instruments' appraised value had risen to $6,202,101, according to the Foundation's financial statements, though the same statements list donated instruments on the balance sheet at $914,114.[1]

The Foundation's Periphery Outreach Program was piloted in 2020 to extend support to talented young musicians in outlying areas who lack access to high-level arts education.[17] In the program's second year, seven musicians received funding for twelve private lessons each, travel stipends, and instruction from top-tier teachers; the Foundation also arranged specialized masterclasses in peripheral communities.[17] The 2021 report separately noted that 60 Creative Excellence grant recipients that year lived in Israel's periphery, underscoring the program's reach beyond Israel's major urban centers.[17]

Beyond its scholarship and competition work, AICF has maintained several additional programs recognizing and promoting Israeli artistic achievement. The Fransua Shapira Prize is an annual award for young musicians supported by the Foundation, documented in connection with musician Doron Toister in the National Library of Israel's catalog.[22] A separate initiative, described in a 2019 anniversary report, provided musical instruments to children who could not otherwise afford them.[23]

The Foundation's Israeli Culture & Arts (ICA) Awards honor artists across performing and visual arts, music, design, theater, television, and cinema. A 2022 Jerusalem Post column reported that the inaugural awards in 2019 recognized Hanna Azoulay Hasfari, Vania Heymann, Ron Leshem, Ohad Naharin, and Idan Raichel. It also reported that the 2022 winners were selected by a combination of a professional judging panel and a public vote that drew more than 4,000 online participants.[24]

The Foundation also historically supported music-education outreach. Between 1983 and 1987, it backed composer Tsippi Fleischer's project "Composers in Search of their Roots," which included a program called "Who's Afraid of Modern Music?" developed with composers Daniel Galai and Meir Mindel, co-sponsored alongside the Ministry of Education and Culture's Omanut La'am program and the Histadrut Labor Union.[25] In 2017, the Foundation described its mission as funding excellence in Israel's arts; chair Scott Mortman said talent and drive, rather than whether an applicant was Jewish, Muslim, or Christian, were the primary considerations for support.[9]

The Foundation suffered a catastrophic setback in December 2008 when it was revealed that its funds had been entangled in Bernard Madoff's fraud. AICF lost $14 million as a result and was forced to halt almost all of its operations.[18] CEO David Homan later recalled being told on December 11, 2008, that the Foundation's money with Madoff was not real — an event he described as erasing years of effort "in one second."[18]

Recovery required both emergency external support and a determined rebuilding of the Foundation's donor base and program infrastructure. In 2009, the Ted Arison Family Foundation provided $250,000 as emergency support for the Sharett scholarship program specifically, enabling AICF to meet its 2009 commitments and continue operating.[26] Then, at a January 2010 gala marking the Foundation's 70th anniversary, the Ted Arison Family Foundation committed an annual grant of $2.5 million for five years, providing sustained backing for its recovery.[27]

Under David Homan's leadership, fundraising increased by approximately 40 percent, and the grant program grew by $1.3 million.[27] The Foundation shifted from holding one major fundraising event annually to producing dozens and worked to build an international network to promote Israeli art and bring the range of Israeli culture under a common umbrella.[27] A subsequent report described the Foundation as funding dozens of programs and more than 600 scholarships annually following its recovery, with the annual New York gala raising approximately $400,000–$480,000 — roughly 20–25 percent of the Foundation's annual returns.[18]

The COVID-19 pandemic created acute financial distress for Israeli artists across disciplines, and AICF responded by launching the Israeli Artist Relief Fund in 2020.[17] The initial cycle aimed to assist 105 professional artists, but an anonymous grant partner enabled the Foundation to scale the program tenfold from its original goal and broaden eligibility to artists ages 25 through 60 and older.[17] The Foundation's 2021 report said recipients received 3,000 NIS each and that, by the time of the report, 1,836 Israeli artists had received more than $1.8 million in emergency support through the program.[17]

CEO Iris Reff Ronen described a second relief cycle in 2021 totaling NIS 2.5 million, raised specifically to address the ongoing crisis and covering practitioners in dance, film, music, theater, and visual arts — from performers and directors to designers and visual artists.[28] Together, the relief cycles extended emergency aid across a broad range of professions in Israel's arts sector.[17][28]

The Foundation's 2023 financial statements report appropriations for grants and projects totaling $1,942,659 for 2023, compared with $1,436,238 for 2022 — an increase of roughly 35 percent year-over-year.[1] Substantially all donated musical instruments in the Foundation's collection were reported as on loan to current or former scholarship recipients.[1] The Foundation's cumulative giving, as self-reported, exceeded $160 million across eight decades of operation.[2]

In 2017, the Foundation's chair indicated a goal of raising the annual scholarship budget from $2 million to $5 million and taking on larger-scale, long-term projects — a stated aspiration at that time rather than a reported achievement.[9] A Ynet report described the Foundation as distributing approximately $2 million annually in donations during the period it covered, consistent with the figures reported in the 2007 interview with Gideon Paz, who placed the operating budget at roughly $2.5 million.[3][8]

The scope of artistic talent that passed through AICF's scholarship programs spans numerous domains of Israeli cultural life. The Foundation names among those it identified and supported early in their careers violinists Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman, and Gil Shaham; pianist Yefim Bronfman; choreographer and dancer Ohad Naharin; musician Idan Raichel; novelist and screenwriter Ron Leshem; visual artist Michal Rovner; singer Rita; filmmaker Eytan Fox; and filmmaker Vania Heymann.[2] The 2012 Ynet profile also named Itzhak Perlman, Menashe Kadishman, Gil Shaham, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra among those supported.[27]

Former beneficiaries have in many cases returned to the organization's programs by serving on audition panels, judging competitions, or mentoring younger recipients.[9] Artists supported by the Foundation have gone on to join major international orchestras, compose classical works, and build internationally recognized careers.[23]

Across its history, AICF has linked American Jewish philanthropy with the development of Israeli artistic life through support for institutions, individual artists, professional training, and international exposure. Its documented beneficiaries include institutions ranging from the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Batsheva Dance Company to the Israel Museum and Bezalel Academy, alongside generations of scholarship recipients and competition participants.[11][5]