The Artist Yaacov Agam
Yaacov Agam, wearing hat, photograph by his son Ron
The 20th century produced many outstanding artists who have contributed to the world of art as we know it today. They developed new techniques, using new materials, and helped us view the world through a different lens. Yaacov Agam is one of those who stand out in the way he perceived the world, through his use of new mediums, and his use of color.
The Early Days of Yaacov Agam
Yaacov Agam was born in 1928 in Rishon-le-Zion, Palestine (now Israel) to a rabbi and Kabbalist named Yehoshua Gibstein. In 1946, he studied art under Mordecai Ardon at the Bezalel Academy in Jerusalem, and then went to Zurich then Paris, attending the Atelier d’art abstrait and the Academy de la Grande Chaumière. During this period, Agam found inspiration and direction through his teacher Johannes Itten, who worked on Bauhaus principles, and artist Wassily Kadinsky’s 1911 work, “On the Spiritual in Art: And Painting in Particular.”
Kinetic Art
Agam’s first solo exhibition in the Galerie Craven in Paris in 1953 displayed the beginnings of his famous kinetic work. One series of early work, called Paintings in Movement, used geometrical art pieces, the image of each shifting as the viewer moved past them. The other series, Transformable Pictures, encouraged viewer participation to change the picture through manual activation. Yaacov Agam was one of the Kinetic Art pioneers, showcasing his art along with many others in the genre-defining Le Mouvement exhibition in Paris in 1955.
The Agam Method
While Yaacov Agam continued to have a highly successful artist career in the following decades and today, one of his notable achievements is the Agam Method. This method, activated in Israel in 1983, teaches visual concepts to children ages 3-6 for improvement in mathematics, motor skills, and general school preparedness. Studies have shown this teaching method to generate great benefit and enthusiasm including among those children who are non-social or non-verbal.
The Art of Yaacov Agam
The Agam Method is only one of Yaacov Agam’s many works and achievements. His kinetic art has been featured in many significant venues and forms, incorporating light, sound, and machinery, as seen in sculptures, buildings, and wall art. His art has appeared in many solo exhibitions throughout the 1970s and beyond, and he continues to work today in Paris. His kinetic art is the foundation for many fine art concepts and ideas today; limited edition prints and posters and sculptures of Agam’s work are available at Zimmerman Limited Editions in Baltimore, Maryland.
Rosanne Zimmerman and Yaacov Agam
Yaacov Agam and Duke Zimmerman
Yaacov Agam Signing ”Environmental Space” Limited Edition Mirror, at Zimmerman Editions, Ltd.
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