Israel’s prestigious Bezalel Academy of Art and Design opened The Nathan Drahi Research and Innovation center which will allow students to combine their creative skills with modern science and technology. 

Founded over a century ago, Bezalel is known for its artistic innovations tackling some of the world’s most pressing issues, from climate change to natural disasters. 

“The goal is all about connecting the artistic disciplines to science, technology, the tech ecosystem, and research. We think about the big challenges of the world, and we try to look at those issues from a design perspective,” Prof. Adi Stern, president of Bezalel Academy of Art & Design, told i24NEWS.

“We know that we can help with healthcare, we can help with sustainability, we can help with smart mobility and smart cities and so on,” he added. “We artists and designers have been innovating since antiquity.”

French-Israeli philanthropist Patrick Drahi, the founder of the Patrick & Lina Drahi Foundation, funded the new center because he believes that Israel is not only a “startup nation.” 

“Israel is a startup nation, it is very famous for innovation in the tech industry and we, Jewish people, are also very much connected to the arts, music, paintings all around the world. But now to connect innovation to art is really a connection between the heart and the brain of the Jewish people,” he told i24NEWS. 

The Drahi family owns Sotheby’s, one of the largest art auctions in the world. Drahi said he was looking forward to bringing Israeli artists to the forefront of the international art scene. 

“We are definitely planning to collaborate between Sotheby’s and the center in Bezalel in innovation, art, and promoting all kinds of art, especially new arts. From here we can help the new generation of artists to develop their skills and promote them around the world,” he added.