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AIMIG Israel Trip 2022 | 26 – 31 October

The long-awaited annual Israel Trip has resumed and concluded to great acclaim. A group of 24 Italian AIMIG members took part in this experience, rich in impressions, inspirations, and stimuli to be absorbed and reflected upon.

Those visiting the country for the first time were able to experience firsthand the warm, almost unexpected, family-like hospitality of their Israeli hosts, who welcomed us into their homes for dinner. Guests also had the opportunity to enjoy their hosts’ Contemporary Art collections, thanks to the collaboration with the Association of Israeli Friends of the Israel Museum, led by Lea Rotstein, which organized these private-home receptions.



The explanations provided by the guide Angela Polacco were truly inspiring. She curated every visit on the program with great passion, offering an abundance of detail along with historical insights and intriguing anecdotes.

With the same level of dedication, the staff of the Israel Museum made possible, on 27 October, the inaugural event for Emilio Isgrò’s work Decreto de la Alhambra e coda imperiale, which was donated to the museum during the year with the collaboration of AIMIG.

Among those in attendance were the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Israel Museum, Itzik Molho; the current Italian Ambassador to Tel Aviv, His Excellency Sergio Barbanti, supported by his Cultural Office led by Dr. Maria Sica; the former Israeli Ambassador to Italy, Mr. Dror Eydar; and the Quirinale curator, Italian art critic and writer Renata Cristina Mazzantini, who had previously followed Maestro Isgrò’s work closely, particularly for the exhibition of Colui Che Sono at the Quirinale in Rome.



Below we share a selection of photos from the trip and the itinerary followed this year, along with the promise to repeat the experience in Israel next year (8–13 October 2023), exploring new approaches and new destinations such as Jerusalem with Bethlehem and the Herodium, the Negev Desert, Masada, and the Dead Sea of the Scrolls.

So we can say, as is customary among Israelis:


“Next Year in Jerusalem”

THE PROGRAMME


Wednesday, 26 October

  • EL AL flight departing from Milan Malpensa Airport (T1) at 12:10

  • Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv at 16:55

  • Transfer by private air-conditioned bus with Wi-Fi to Jerusalem

  • Check-in and accommodation at the Herbert Samuel Hotel, Jerusalem

  • 20:00 Welcome Dinner hosted in a private home by Israeli Friends Natanya & Jonathan Jawno

  • 22:00 / 22:30 Return to the hotel

Thursday, 27 October

  • 08:00 Departure by bus from the hotel

  • 08:30 – 09:30 Visit to the Chagall Windows at the synagogue of Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital

  • 10:00 – 13:00 Visit to Yad Vashem (Holocaust Memorial Museum)

  • 13:30 – 14:30 Light lunch at the Modern Restaurant, Israel Museum

  • 14:30 Official inauguration of the artwork Decreto de la Alhambra e coda imperiale, donated by Maestro Emilio Isgrò

  • 15:00 – 17:30 Guided tour of the Israel Museum sections:Judaica, Archaeology, Ancient Art, Modern and Contemporary Art, Shrine of the Book (Dead Sea Scrolls), and the Billy Rose Art Garden

  • 17:30 – 18:00 Shopping at the Israel Museum bookshop and return to the hotel

  • 20:00 Dinner hosted in a private home by Israeli Friends Shoshana & Martin Gerstel

  • 22:00 / 22:30 Return to the hotel

Friday, 28 October

  • 08:00 Walking departure from the hotel (5–7 minutes)

  • 08:30 – 13:00 Old City of Jerusalem: Western Wall and Mount of Olives

  • Light lunch in the area

  • Visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Old City quarters, and the Souk (Arab market)

  • 17:00 / 17:30 Transfer to Tel Aviv by private air-conditioned bus with Wi-Fi; check-in at the Herbert Samuel Hotel, Tel Aviv

  • 19:15 Departure for Herzliya

  • 19:45 Shabbat Dinner hosted in a private home by Israeli Friends and collectors Eva & Edouard Sterngold, in the seaside town of Herzliya (north of Tel Aviv)

  • 22:00 / 22:30 Return to the hotel

Saturday, 29 October

  • 09:30 Departure by bus from the hotel

  • Tel Aviv city tour: Habima Square, Rothschild Boulevard, White City (Bauhaus districts), and Hatachana Compound (former railway station)

  • 13:45 Lunch featuring local delicacies in an authentic Mediterranean Ottoman building

  • Visit to the Lothar Gallery (Jaffa, 30 Yeffet Street), showcasing unique glass artworks inspired by multicultural creativity

  • 15:15 Visit to the Chelouche Gallery (15 Hazorfim Street), founded in 1985 by Nira Itzhaki, bringing together emerging and established Israeli and international artists

  • 17:00 Visit to the Maskit Boutique, founded in 1954 by Ruth Dayan, featuring luxurious contemporary garments embroidered with traditional techniques by Hungarian, Yemeni, Lebanese, and other Jewish artisans

  • 19:00 Dinner hosted at the residence of Philippe & Orly Weil (Past President of Israeli Friends)

  • 21:00 / 21:30 Tel Aviv by night: Neve Tzedek neighborhood (optional; others return to the hotel)

Sunday, 30 October

  • 09:00 Departure by bus from the hotel

  • 09:45 Visit to the town of Rehovot and the Weizmann Institute

  • 12:00 – 13:00 Light lunch at Café Mada, within the Weizmann Institute area

  • 13:30 – 15:30 Visit to the studio of artist Michal Rovner

  • 16:00 Return to Tel Aviv and free time for shopping

  • 19:30 Departure for dinner

  • 20:00 Dinner hosted at the residence of Roni & Alan Baharaff (Christie’s Israel). On this occasion, we will be joined by the Director of the Israel Museum, Prof. Denis Weil, upon his return from the American Friends Gala Dinner in New York

  • 22:00 / 22:30 Return to the hotel

Monday, 31 October

  • 09:30 Departure by bus from the hotel

  • 10:00 – 12:00 Visit to the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, likely welcomed by Director Tania Coen-Uzzielli

  • 12:30 Light lunch in the area

  • 14:00 Visit to the Peres Center

  • 16:30 Transfer to Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv

  • Return flight with EasyJet departing at 20:30, arrival at Milan Malpensa at 23:50




 
 
 

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