Herzl, in his book "Altneuland" (1902), predicted a bright future for Haifa, the remote town of the beginning of the 20th century: a transportation junction, an industrial center and even transportation by cable car. However, he did not foresee that Haifa would become a hotbed for literary creation, as the founders of the "House of Writers" at 5 Hana Sanesh St. dreamed of.
Abba Khushi is changing the image of Haifa
Indeed, during the days of the British Mandate, Haifa turned from a town on the fringes of the Ottoman Empire into a strategic location for the British Empire when the industrial plants there created an image of a "working town". This image was further strengthened with the establishment of the state, when it was called "Red Haifa".
Khushi's father, the mythical mayor of Haifa in the years 1951-1969, who strove to change this image of the city through diverse cultural initiatives, including the establishment of the Haifa Theater (1961) and the University of Haifa (1965).
Haifa "The City of Craftsmen"
In a meeting with the poet Sh. Shalom In the early 50s, the poet accepted the precarious economic situation of the writers in Israel. that. Shalom promised Father Khushi that if he was offered an apartment in Haifa he would be ready to move to live and work in the city.
Following on from this conversation, Abba Khushi came up with an "Artisan Residences" program under which apartments were made available under favorable conditions to artists from various creative fields so that they could come to live and create in Haifa. It should be mentioned that a similar move was made before him by the mayor of Tel Aviv, Meir Dizengoff, and thanks to him the city became a magnet for cultural creativity.
Following Khushi's initiative, a cornerstone was laid in 1959 for the "House of Writers": a modest 2-story residential building with a tiled roof, at 5 Hana Sanesh St. built according to the plans of the Haifa architect A. Yanovitz.
The distribution of the "free" apartments to the writers was done according to economic criteria, according to the situation of the various creators. Among the creators who received an apartment in the city, as part of the "artists residences" program, not necessarily in the "Writers' House", we included:
- that. Shalom, a poet (1953), who won the Israel Poetry Prize in 1973. His brother, J. Shapira was the director of the Reali school for about three decades.
- Jacob Orland, poet, (1954), writes well-known and beloved songs such as "Etz Ramon", "Two Roses", "There were nights" and many others. He remained living in Haifa until his death in 2002.
- Yehuda Borla, writer, who won the Israel Prize for Literature in 1961.
- Zvi Berger, a painter, born in Haifa, was persuaded by Khushi to return to live and create in Haifa and a spacious studio was made available to him.
However, the creators who enthusiastically came to Haifa soon left it. They lost interest in the sleepy city where no formal cafes existed "slice" with the rich bohemian life that grew up around him.
Aharon Yanovitz (1902-1972), architect of the House of Writers
Aharon Yanovitz was born in Poland and studied architecture and electrical engineering in Germany. Immigrated to Israel in 1927 and settled in Haifa. He founded a planning office in collaboration with the architect Barski, which split after about 10 years. Yanovitz continued in his independent office.
He planned many projects throughout Haifa, mainly residential: in Bat Galim, on Arlozorov and Ahad Ha'am streets and others. The most prominent project among them was an addition to the old Carmel Hospital (Moshe Gerstel, chief architect) at the same time as maintaining the original sad in the international style.
The Yanovitz family had two sons who continued the professional tradition of their father: Itamar Yanovitz, who later became the engineer of the Haifa district, and the architect Amnon Niv, who served as the engineer of the city of Jerusalem.
Building for preservation?
It is possible that the current residents of the modest building, immersed in greenery and overlooking the spectacular view of the bay, do not know who the previous residents were and which literary works were born within its walls.
Wasn't the "House of Writers" building worthy of being included in the list of "buildings for preservation", not precisely because of its architectural value but because of the history inherent in it?
Thanks
- My thanks are hereby given to Mr Michael Zalotin For his proposal for the topic of this week's article, "The House of Writers" in Haifa.
- Also, I hereby thank Ms. A blunt statement, from the Haifa History Association, an expert on Haifa architecture and its architects, for her help in obtaining essential information for editing the article.
Sources
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The articles in this section are based on open information published in sources such as Wikipedia and other websites and may include various historical inaccuracies arising from the aforementioned sources.
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I believe that the poet Jacob Orland moved his place of residence to Haifa following the housing incentive of the head of the kir, Abba Khushi; He left Haifa for many years.
The same initiative of Abba Khushi did not bring to Haifa only writers, poets, artists, musicians, among them Frank Peleg and Mark Labrie, who were among the institutes of classical music in Israel! And if I'm not mistaken, the painter Zvi Meirowitz and his writer wife Judith Handel were also Haifa for the same reason.
The initiative was financially possible because the municipality gave additional building rights and the columned floors in the buildings that were on the Carmel slopes created adjoining apartments + studios.
I remember Mashef's apartment. For Berry, it was a cultural corner like few others in the city
Thank you very much for your response, the information provided by you is very important and nicely answers those who claim that the initiative failed.
All the best to you my dear friend Dr. David Bar On. Have a good and blessed week.
Many thanks to, my friend Rafol, have a good week!
I have to admit, every time I am awed anew by the in-depth research that Dr. Bar On invests in before publishing an article about this or that place, one of the many that our city of Haifa has been blessed with.
And the drawings, one by one as they exist in reality, are simply a work of thought!
God bless Dr. David Brown, continue to do your work faithfully for the sake of deepening the knowledge of the residents of Haifa.
Thank you very much, Adi, have a good week!
Thanks for the very interesting article.
With your permission, I will add that among the writers who were invited to live in Haifa, was the literary critic and poet Yitzhak Akabihu (died in 1999) who lived at 5 Koresh Street in Hadar Alyion in Haifa.
Thank you, Michael, both for suggesting the topic and for providing the information. Good week!
Haifa is a city of whiners...
For this reason, the Carmelites are considering changing the name of the monastery to the "Monastery of the Weepers".
Instead of investing in education and thinking outside the box, they invest in false brainwashing for the youth.
How does this relate to the article?!
Interesting. Another piece of Haifa history unknown to everyone.
Thank you very much for your comment, have a good week!
Father Khushi was endlessly wrong and this is one of the mistakes. Writers and artists cannot be planted. The city should grow them if it is interested in them. In scholarships for young artists, assistance with foundations, the establishment of museums for exhibitions and places of production for art and culture such as the workshop hangars and the municipality's contribution to finance art and sculpture in the city.
The migration of artists to Haifa was a cultural curiosity, and when the motive is cheap housing, then it is an artificial implant.
There is nothing to do without flour there is no Torah and without support there is no culture.
Many spaces for artists and creators have been established in Jerusalem in recent years. The social space in Shaare Zedek, Beit Ot Mozer, the Hansen Center, the new performing arts campus, the artist's workshops, Chutzat the Creator, the ultra-Orthodox center artist, Mosella.
Not everything works, but there are options.
In Haifa, the municipality must support creative centers and give buildings like the pyramid for workshops and exhibitions and increase support for museums and renovate the old and small museums and centers and turn them into festivals and events with an investment to establish more like for example the Mintz library that burned down years ago why shouldn't it be workshops for rent to artists?!
This is true, but it must be said that Khushi's project also contributed to the city, and thanks to him there was a quality theater here, one of the leading in Israel in the 80s-70s. The municipality of Haifa must follow in Khushi's footsteps and cultivate the culture in the city, which is very far behind compared to smaller settlements. Bring here theater performances, music, dance, literature, and encourage local creativity. It is possible if the city leadership wants to support and invest in it. Culture is ultimately one of the main factors that make a city quality and attractive.
Thank you for your response. I appreciate your knowledge and critical thinking but this time, I really disagree with you. Perhaps Khushi was wrong about certain things - because those who don't do it are not wrong - but he was right in opening the cultural institutions and in his attempt - albeit with partial success - to support artists who will be stuck in Haifa. He had a good teacher, Meir Dizengoff, who also succeeded - partially. Good week!