Benish Mininberg

Benish Mininberg (1902-1996) was an Israeli painter.

Early life

Born in 1902 in Jaffa to his parents – Yehuda & Leba – of the First Aliyah, who arrived in Israel in 1900 from Kramenchog, Ukraine. The name Benish means “Ben – Nes” – son of a miracle.

The family lived in the craftsmen center in Neve Shalom neighborhood. The father painted house, decorated walls and was involved in public work. Benish studied in “Elians” primary school until the fourth grade, and then stopped his studied and joined his father in painting houses and walls.

In the Avraham Soskin’s famous picture from 1908 of the plot owners’ assembly held at the sands of Ahuzat Bayit, Benish is seen standing on a sand pile with other children.

On Passover 1917, the Turkish governor Jamal Facha evacuated Tel Aviv and Jaffa residents due to World War 1’s events. The Mininberg family moved to Kfar Saba area and lived with many other exiles in a tent camp built in a eucalyptus forest.

In his family there are 5 boys and 2 girls: Efrayim, Benish, Tzvi, Abraham, Rivkah, and Tova & Levy. At the end of the war the family returned to Neve Shalom.

In 1921, his father Yehuda, who was one of the crafstmen’s center and craftsmen’s bank leaders, initiated the building of a craftsmen neighborhood, and so the family house was built at 22nd Shenkin Street. To this day there are ruins of a fish pond which at the time existed in the yard, along with a stone fountain.

After World War 1 (year not known), Benish was sent to study at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. His son, Uri, says he was there from only one year.

Career

During the early 20s, Benish began painting decorative wall paintings in peoples houses in Tel Aviv as part of the family business owned by his father. Their advertisements in “Hamelacha” magazine in 1922 and 1923 featured the logo “Room paintings by European fashion”.

In their early models, Benish and his father, Yehuda, mainly used pictures printed in a book published in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1883. The book – "Ornamentenschatz" – is today owned by the grandson – Eli Mininberg.

Files found in Benish’s inheritance testify that in 1925 he performed several special painting jobs in public buildings in Hebron for the British government in Jerusalem. According to his son, Uri, Benish told him he had painted a ceiling paining in the house of a British governor - probably Charles Clore – in the governor’s palace (“Armon Hanatziv”) in Jerusalem in 1928.

In 1928 an advertisement for the “Institute for Israeli art of Mininberg & Sons” appeared in “Hanagar” (The carpenter) magazine. The institute’s major products were Israeli souvenirs in a “Betzalel” style, made of olive tree, copper strands, embroidery. The souvenirs included motifs such as camels, biblical motifs, shepherds, sheep and Israeli landscape and scenery.

In 1929 the Mininberg’s presented their institute’s art work at the “Yerid – Hamizrach” (The eastern fair) exhibition and won a silver medal for second place. The institute was housed in a shack in the family’s yard at 22nd Shenkin Street in Tel Aviv, and another store was located in “Nachalat Binyamin”. (The shack still exists).

The institute operated for a few years and in the early 30’s there were no more consumers for its products.

Benish made a career change and worked as a furniture decorator and painter, mostly on stylish metal furniture. At first he worked for the “Shlechter et Fridman” company in Tel Aviv in 1934.

During 1935 – 1937 Benish worked in Jerusalem for “The Aldouby Brothers” – metal furniture manufacturers. He also performed private painting jobs for Arab furniture companies in Jerusalem.In 1938 Benish and his Family moved to Beirut, Lebanon, in order for him to work for a metal furniture company owned by the industrialist Israel Hananya (Hananzon). The company has several branches spread around the Middle East. Benish served as the company’s foreman and decorative painter. In those years, the company’s wealthy customers would order personal paintings and ornaments painted on wooden and metal rods – a job Benish specialized in.

For a short period of time, Benish went to Syria & Turkey to work for similar furniture companies. According to his Grandson, Elli, he also painted walls and the palace of Kamal Ata Turk in Ankara. Some pictures possessed by his son, feature Benish near by the Palace in Ankara.

Benish returned to Israel in 1939 and was sent to Egypt as a professional representative of “Tzeva” – today known as “Tambur”.

In 1948, when the Israeli Air Force was established, Benish participated in a competition to choose the design for the Air Force emblem. His design for the emblem, a Star of David combined with a wing was chosen. This was the first emblem for the Air force’s beret, which years later was replaced by the current one.

Following the establishment of the state of Israel, he painted and sold his paintings. His son, Abraham, joined him and they moved to Ramat Gan and opened a painting and framing studio. Throughout his life Benish painted in oil on fabric in varied styles and made a living from selling his paintings.

Benish traveled the world and visited his brother, Tzvi, who settled in South Africa. He visited his brother, Abraham, who lived in New York several times – where he participated in a drawing exhibition at the graphic institute of New York in 1958.

The painter and author Ronit Yedaya learned drawing at the age of 15 in Benish’s studio in Ramat Gan. In an article published in “Tarbut Maariv” on April 28th 1995 she mentioned her working as his assistant and together with him creating replicas of great artists, such as Picasso, Van – Gouch etc. “We didn’t make forgeries, you could see they were replicas. From him I learned the secrets of drawing”.

Marriage and children

In 1926 Benish married Rozie Shpindler. They had 2 boys – Abraham and Uri. The family lived at 3rd Shenkin Street and then moved to 21st Yochanan Hasandlar Street.

Death and afterward

Benish lived until the age of 94 and passed away in 1996 in Ramat Gan.

His inheritance includes hundreds of oil paintings possessed by family members and art collectors.

Benish was a modest painter who was not famous in Israel, perhaps because he did not belong to any of the painter's organizations and didn’t make any effort to become famous. As a part of a family of establishers of the first Aliyah, and of the leaders of the craftsmen center, Benish took part in the development and establishment of the state of Israel and new times of prosperity and hardship.

External links

*http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/1,7340,L-2027715,00.html
*http://www.sali.org/sali_friends.php