Biography
The Female Body Reconstructed
Beatrice von Bormann
The female body is key to the work of Ruthi Helbitz Cohen. It “performs” on the canvas in different shapes and guises: dressed or undressed, in the role of a clown, witch, child, or femme fatale; as a mythological goddess or historical figure; hanging from the ceiling, floating, lying down; fragmented in space, alone or in the company of other complementary figures. The artist takes the body apart and reassembles it, like a mechanic might do with a car or an engine, or a scientist when dissecting and studying the body of an animal. It is as if she is searching for the inner essence of these women by pulling their bodies apart, by painting heads, limbs or organs separately and then putting them back together like a mismatched puzzle, in which the individual pieces don’t quite fit. A sense of uneasiness arises at the sight of a skull-like head on top of a semi-transparent torso, of a body dissolving into a dark cloak, or of arms taking the place of legs, reaching up towards the torso.
Eros and Thanatos, love and death unite within a single, inseparable figure. Helbitz Cohen says that: “I want to make a small but significant change in viewers’ observations and understandings. Get them interested, get close and turn their head around. I want to make them doubt what they hold as true, real, acceptable. I want my paintings to be inoperable, I want the spectator to object. I would like the painting to generate an unpleasant but at the same time desirable thought process that will make the viewers want to possess this distortion.”
To behold Helbitz Cohen’s work is to behold a world rich in contradictions, strong and subtle emotions, and intricate thoughts seen through a distorting mirror. Beyond the horror, disgust and pain lies a world of delicate beauty.
In addition to the numerous museum exhibits in Israel, she was invited to show her work in Germany, Netherlands, France, Denmark, Greece, China, and the USA. Alongside the artistic work in her studio, Ruthi teaches art in both the Beit Berl Arts College and the Oranim College, Program of Multidisciplinary Studies in Humanities and the Arts (M.Ed.).
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2025 | Behind the Silent Darkness, Wilfrid Israel Museum |
2025 | The Book of Ruth, Inselgalerie, Berlin |
2024 | Drawing The Waves And Other Projects, Ruthi Helbitz Cohen and Diana Blok, SiC Athens Space for International Cooperation, Athens |
2024 | The Book of Ruth, Kirsten Weber’s Castel, Brandenburg |
2023-24 | Art In The Vide, Museum De Fundati, Zwolle |
2023 | The Book of Ruth, Moving Gallery, Utrecht |
2023 | The Sky Fell On Her, Dat Bolwerck, Zutphen |
2023 | Drawing The Waves And Other Projects, Ruthi Helbitz Cohen and Diana Blok, Suzanne Biederberg Gallery, Amsterdam |
2023 | Mother I shall weave a chain of pearls for thy neck with my tears of sorrow, Neve Schechter Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2023 | The Fragile Noise, Gordon Gallery, Jerusalem |
2022 | And Then the Silence, Contemporary Art Center Ramla, curator: Dr. Smadar Sheffi. |
2021 | Bombs Will Fly over the Naked King, and a Heavy Heart will plummet, |
2020 | Hamidrsaha Gallery – Hayarkon 19, Tel Aviv (curator: Avi Lubin) |
2020 | The Sky Fell On Me, Umm El Fahem Museum (curator: Yael Guilat). |
2019 | Beloved, The Open Museum, Tefen Industrial Park (curator: Ruthi Ofek). |
2018 | Potsdam, Amsterdam, Tel Aviv (with Joshua Rosenman), Kunsthaus Potsdam (curators: Hubertus von der Golz and Angelika Euchner). |
2017 | Set, Haifa Museum of Art (curator: Svetlana Reingold). |
2015 | Inspire Project, A Deed Without a Name, Macedonia Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki (curator: Thouli Misirloglou). |
2015 | Daphne, the Israel Culture institute, Budapest. |
2015 | Whispers, Gordon Gallery,Tel Aviv. |
2015 | Curtain of Tears, Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art (curator: Aya Lurie). |
2014 | Four Matriarchs and a Remainder, Gordon Gallery, Tel Aviv. |
2013 | Frameless, Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou (curator: Yaniv Shapira). |
2012 | The Spider’s Strategy, Beelden aan Zee Museum, The Hague (curator: Ronit Eden). |
2011 | On the Edge (with Yehoshua Sobol), Nahum Gutman Museum of Art, Tel Aviv. |
2010 | Sisyphus, Polylog, Micelmeerbiennale, Köln, Germany. |
2009 | Damsel’s House, Helena Rubinstein Pavilion for Contemporary Art, Tel Aviv Museum of Art (curator: Varda Steinlauf). |
2008 | Mind the Gap, Evi Gougenheim Gallery, Paris |
2007 | Distortion, Umtrieb Gallery, Kiel, Germany |
2006 | Mind the Gap, Umtrieb Gallery, Kiel, Germany |
2006 | New Works, Julie M. Gallery, Tel Aviv |
Selected Group Exhibitions
1994 | HaMidrasha Graduate Exhibition, Nofhar Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| Tiger, Mary Fauzi Gallery, Jaffa |
| Painting Above and Beyond, Ramat Gan Museum of Israeli Art |
| Tel Aviv Artists’ House |
| Yavne Art Workshop |
| The Gallery at Borochov, Tel Aviv |
1995 | Sharet Foundation Award Winners, The Genia Schreiber University Art Gallery, |
| Tel Aviv University |
1995-96 | Traveling Exhibition, Sharet Foundation Award Winners, USA |
| Nehama Café Gallery, Jaffa |
1996 | Neveh Tzedek Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| Sharet Foundation Award Winners, Ramat Gan Museum of Israeli Art |
| Artists Against the Hard Hand Policy, Beit Haam Gallery and Umm al Fahem |
| Art Gallery |
2002 | Imagine, Umm al Fahem Art Gallery |
| Teacher Artists Award, The Ministry of Science and Culture, Oranim College |
| Gallery, Tivon |
2003 | Dying to Sleep, Julie M. Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| First Portrait Award Winner Exhibition, Helena Rubinstein Art Pavilion, Tel Aviv |
| Museum of Art |
2005 | Body Marks, Memorial Hall Gallery, Tivon |
| Gallery Artists, Brantesburg Gallery, Copenhagen |
2006 | Piece of Art – Peace of Art, Traveling Exhibition of works by Egyptian, Israeli, |
| Palestinian and German Artists |
| Intensive Care, Julie M. Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2007 | Raffi, Tova Osman Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| Commemorating Esty Reshef, Memorial Hall Gallery, Tivon |
| Bread and Roses, Minshar Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| In and Out, Julie M. Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2008 | Black, Bineth Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2009 | Award Winners Exhibition, The Ministry of Culture and Sport Prizes in Art and |
| Design, Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod |
| Lo-li-ta, Office in Tel Aviv Gallery |
2010 | Art Couture, Benith Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| Kieler Museum, Kiel |
2011 | Slough, Rothschild 121 Gallery, Tel Aviv |
| Black Mamba, Julie M. Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2012 | 2012, Gordon Gallery 2, Tel Aviv |
2013 | Summer Exhibition, Gordon Gallery and Gordon Gallery 2, Tel Aviv |
2014 | Chicago Triangle, Haifa Museum of Art (curator: Ruti Direktor) |
2015 | Summer Exhibition, Gordon Gallery, Tel Aviv |
2016 | NordArt 2016, The Israel Pavilion, Büdelsdorf Germany, (curator: Carmit Blumenson) |
2019 | Naked Soul: Chaim Soutine and Israeli Art, Mishkan Museum Ein Harod, (curator: Yaniv Shapira) |
2022 | Y-art, Sderot Rail Station |
2022 | Y-art, Hashalom Rail Station, Diana Blok & Ruthi Helbitz Cohen, Tel Aviv |
2023 | The Naked King , Theatre of democracy, Tel Aviv demonstration |
2023 | “Hachora”, Nulobaz Cooperative Art Space, Tel Aviv |
2023 | Real Time, Bei Hankin, Kfar Yehusha (Curator: Neta Haber) |
2024 | ״”Midrash Guf”, Mixed Emotions, Tel Aviv (Curators: Tali Kayam and Hagar Raban) |
2024 | Fragilities, Dina Recanati Gallery, Naked Truth, (Curator: Hagai Segev) |
2024 | 50 years of The Jerusalem Printing Workshop, Jerusalem (Curator: Arik Kilemnik) |
2024 | Art on Paper, Moving gallery, Amsterdam |
Awards
2013 | Ministry of Culture Prize. |
2010 | Commendation, Kener Award. |
2008 | Prize for the Encouragement of Creation, Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport. |
2004 | Teacher-Artist Project Award, Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport First |
2004 | Portrait, Israel National Lottery Council for the Arts. |
1996-97 | America-Israel Cultural Foundation, Sharet Grant America-Israel Cultural Foundation, Sharet Grant. |
Residencies
- 2026
ISCP Brooklyn, USA - 2024
ISCP Brooklyn, USA - 2023
Schechter Gallery Residency, Tel Aviv, Isarel - 2006
Peace of Art – Piece of Art, Heinrich Böll Foundation Residency, Germany
Upcoming
- 2025
Ramat Gan Museum - 2026
Mutare Gallery, Berlin
Selected Collections
- The Israel Museum, Jerusalem Museum
- De Fundatie.
- Tel Aviv Museum of Art.
- Ein Harod Museum.
- Haifa Museum.
- Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art.
- MMCA, Museum of Contemporary Art in Thessaloniki.
- The art collection of the Haaretz newspaper.
- Bank Leumi Collection.
- Public and private Collections in Israel and abroad.