I have been partial to Dani Karavan’s work, since I
first encountered it more than 25 years ago. Kikar
Levana is an environmental sculpture that sits atop a
small hill, at the Edith Wolfson Park, in Tel Aviv. Work
on it began in 1977 and was completed in 1988. The
sculpture’s name means White Square and perhaps alludes
to the city’s nickname, the White City. It is located at
the highest point in Tel Aviv, where the city meets
nearby Givatayim. It is not the type of place frequented
by tourists, but rather by residents of nearby
neighborhoods who come to enjoy the park.
Kikar Levana is reminiscent of Dani Karavan’s earlier
work, the Negev Monument in Beersheba (which should not
be missed if you are in the area). Here, the artist has
chosen to use white concrete. The contrast between the
sculpture, the park’s greenery and the surrounding
buildings, most of which are made of reinforced concrete
is stark.
This sculpture spans an area of 30 x 50 meters. It
features many of the elements that are familiar in
Karavan’s other works, a pyramid, a water channel, a
tower (with wind flutes), and a dome with an olive tree
in its center.
The sculpture manages to stand out from its
surroundings while blending in with the setting, which
aside from its purely esthetic quality is much of its
appeal.
“The site dictates the forms and the materials. The
site determines and decides. The use of the forms and of
the materials is the request that needs to be respected,
that should not be ignored”, wrote Karavan, in Dani
Karavan, Dialogue with the Environment/Resonance with
the Earth.
Most of Karavan’s works are abroad. His works can be
found in Italy, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Japan,
as well as other countries. His most recent works in
Israel can found in Nitzana and at Yad Le’Banim in
Hadera. If you visit the Weizmann Institute of
Science you can also see one his sculptures there.
Probably the most visible of works (in this day and age
of electronic communications), is the wall relief in
stone for the Knesset’s Assembly Hall, which is made of
stone from the Sea of Galilee. The work was completed in
1966.
Kikar Levana is located at the Edith Wolfson Park in
Tel Aviv. The main entrance to the park is at the
intersection of Ha’ Tayasim Ave. and LaGuardia
Street. From the Givatayim side, the entry is from
Ha’Shalom Ave. The sculpture is located in a
public park that is open all day.
