About the Artist
Ari Gradus was born in a small village in Israel. He began painting at the age of eight, at which time his work already showed unusual promise. By the time he was twelve, he had won his first fine art award in Tel Aviv. After three years of army service, Ari came to the United States, where he completed his formal education at New York University. Shortly thereafter, he began to exhibit his work throughout the East Coast. In November 1968, Ari was invited by CBS-TV to be featured on a nationally televised program, Look Up and Live.
Over the next years, the work of Ari Gradus became increasingly acclaimed and in demand. He received numerous awards and his work began to be in many important collections. In 1982, Aris work was chosen by the Washington Square Art Committee to tour the United States in a special travel award exhibition. In April 1983, he was featured on the nationally televised NBC-TV program First Estate. Articles about Ari appeared in the Ashai Journal, Japan in 1985 and in Our Israel, a Hebrew newspaper with worldwide circulation, in December 1989. Numerous other articles in various publications were to follow.
In September 1990 in Memphis, Tennessee, Ari was a guest on radio station WKNO-FM on Checking on the Arts, and was interviewed on WMC-TVs Noon News; his work was also featured on a special evening program on Channel 5 TV. In November 1990, Ari and his work was the subject of A Road to Creativity, a program aired on TV Channel 55 in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1995, Ari was featured on Channel 2 TV, Israel, in a special program A Place Called Yesterday and was a special guest on Artist in the News, PBS Radio, Wickford RI, in 1996.
Since 1995 Ari Gradus has been included in Whos Who in America Art. In 1996, Aris work was presented to the Mayor of Jerusalem, Ehud Olmert, in a special ceremony and is prominently displayed in the Jerusalem City Hall, where it is in the permanent collection. Ari has been commissioned by various private collectors and organizations to do special art projects. Among these are several large paintings, one of which is displayed in the entrance to Anshe Emeth Temple, New Brunswick, New Jersey, and an original oil of the New York Stock Exchange, which hangs in the office of N.C.Z. Commodities, Inc. on Madision Avenue, New York City. Aris work is in the permanent collection of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum in NYC, as well as in the collections of numerous temples, Jewish community centers and corporations.
Throughout his career, Ari has received many awards. Among them are:
2009 + 2010 - Ann Arbor Summer Art Festival Best in Show
2008 - City of Skokie, I.L. Merit Award
1998 - Washington Square Art Exhibit, N. Y. First Place
1998 - City of Highland Park, Illinois Best in Show
1997, 1996 - City of Boca Raton, Florida First Place and Award of Excellence
1995, 1983 - Brooklyn Museum Arts and Cultural Association, New York Best in Show
1994 - Greenwich Village Chamber of Commerce, New York Award of Excellence
1993 - South Orange Chamber of Commerce, New Jersey Award of Excellence
1992 - Montclair Art and Craft Guild, New Jersey Special Award
1991 - Millburn Chamber of Commerce, New Jersey Award of Excellence
1990 - Key Biscayne Art Festival , Florida First Place
1990, 1989 - Garden State Cultural Council Award, New Jersey
1989, 1988 - Maurice Podell Historical Museum Award, New Jersey
Aris work has been exhibited at:
2011 - Landscapes for Landsake, Cambridge, NY
Gallery 2000, Coral Springs, FL
Masterpiece Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
Goldman Gallery, Rockville, MD
Sansiao Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Art Expo, New York, NY
Hilton Hotel Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel
Brownstone Gallery, New York, NY
Lever House Gallery, New York, NY
Corey Gallery, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Alan Park Gallery, New York, NY
Omanut Gallery, Jerusalem, Israel
Citicorp Center, New York, NY
The Chosen Gallery, Miami, FL
Patricia Judith Gallery, Boca Raton, FL
Shainberg Gallery, Memphis, TN
Owl 57 Gallery, Woodmere, NY
Other feature articles about Ari have appeared in publications such as:
The Jewish Exponent, Philadelphia, PA (1998)
The Jewish Living Magazine (1998)
Baltimore Jewish Times (1997)
San Diego Times (1995)
Portsmouth, Ohio Daily Times (1994)
The Sun Sentinel, Ft. Lauderdale, FL (1993, 92)
Pittsburgh Jewish News, (1992)
The Sunday Journal, Providence, RI (1991)
The Cleveland News (1991)
The Daily News, NYC (1986)
The Miami Herald (1984)
as well as in numerous Israeli newspapers and magazines.
Major distributors who have handled Aris work include:
Circle Fine Arts, N.Y.C., Los Angeles, Chicago
AGE International, Denver, Colorado
Arvern Art International, New York City
Fine Art Acquisition, New York City
Hollygraph, Hollywood, California
Sansiao Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Ari lives and paints in both the United States and Israel. His work is vibrant, dynamic and often spiritual, with a universal appeal that transcends any one particular culture. |