By MICHAEL OMER-MANHaifa(photo credit: Wikicommons)NORTH The Haifa Museum will launch this month a first-of-its kind exhibit giving space to what it terms “outsider artists” who have never studied or worked in the field of art. The artists taking part in the “Outsiders” exhibit are people who often lived on the margins of society, many in mental institutions and other institutional environments.While there are existing streams of art known as “Art Brut” and “Virgin Art,” which generally describe non-professional or merely instinctual artists, they rarely include artists like those whose work is being exhibited by the Haifa Museum.The exhibit, which will run from January 19 until June 2, will display photography, paintings and other mediums in what curators describe as a “colorful, cluttered, obsessive and captivating” exhibit. The exhibition will be accompanied by a series of events, meetings, tours and seminars at the museum.Acre fishermen get new pierThe Acre municipality and Agriculture Ministry dedicated a new fishing pier in the old city of Acre last week in a move politicians said would help local fishermen, the Local website reported. The municipality and the ministry invested some NIS 2.7 million.Speaking at the dedication ceremony, Acre Mayor Shimon Lankry said that his city is developing and “this project would not have happened if the authorities had not put pressure on the former agriculture minister, Shalom Simhon, to advance the project as was done with other projects,” according to the report. “I hope that with the help [the pier] gives, we can advance fishing and help fishermen make a living with dignity,” he added.The port serves some 50 fishing vessels of various sizes and is a source of livelihood to over 150 families, the website reported. The previous pier was damaged by a storm and long-term rotting, making use of a crane vital for repairs of the fishing boats much more difficult.Of the NIS 2.7 million that went into the project, NIS 2.35m. came from the Agriculture Ministry’s budget and another NIS 350,000 came from the Prime Minister’s Office’s budget for the advancement of minorities, according to the report.Israeli man jumps Golan fence to ‘confront’ AssadAn Israeli citizen jumped the border fence in the Golan Heights and entered Syria over the weekend. According to a preliminary investigation, the man, who is believed to have psychological problems, told others he intended to confront Syrian President Bashar Assad and demand the Syrian president stop killing his people. Details of the incident were reportedly conveyed to the IDF by UN forces stationed across the border.Police arrest six for arms sales in NazarethPolice arrested six residents of Nazareth suspected of conducting illegal arms sales over the weekend.According to preliminary details, the suspects, aged 20 to 25, were arrested in possession of at least one rifle and ammunition. Police were set to request that the suspects’ detention be extended in court.CENTER Netanya Holocaust survivor celebrates 100th birthdayA Holocaust survivor, escapee and partisan fighter celebrated her 100th birthday last week in Beit Avraham assisted living facility at Laniado Medical Center in Netanya. Tony Friedman was born in Poland before being taken to a concentration camp during the Second World War. After escaping the camp, she joined partisans in the area. It was there that she met her future husband, Joshua Friedman. Joshua had fled after watching his wife and three children murdered in front of his eyes. The two married in 1949 and immigrated to Israel, later settling in Netanya. Joshua died at the age of 63.Celebrating with Tony, along with nurses and staff at the assisted living facility, was her only granddaughter, who noted that her grandmother was still climbing ladders around the house until the age of 96. She also thanked and praised the staff and care at the hospital.Rishon apartment fire injures dozensA fire that broke out at a residential building in Rishon Lezion overnight Tuesday lightly injured 31 people, including six children and a baby girl. The fire spread into the building’s stairwell from two vehicles that caught fire beneath the building. Magen David Adom paramedics evacuated the injured to several hospitals in the area, including Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer and Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovot.Explosion hits Tel Aviv neighborhoodAn explosion occurred in a building on Y.L. Peretz Street in Tel Aviv late last week. According to police, no one was injured in the blast; however, minor damage was caused to the premises. Police were investigating the circumstances of the explosion.SOUTHAshkelon awarded Culture & Sport Minister’s prize The Ashkelon Municipality was awarded the Culture and Sport Minister’s Culture Award last week, which includes a prize of NIS 75,000 that is earmarked for the benefit of city residents, the Local website reported. Culture and Sport Minister Limor Livnat awarded the prize to Ashkelon Mayor Benny Vaknin, whose city was the first-place recipient.The criteria for winning the prize were noted as the city’s excellence in creativity and its ability to initiate and execute a wide range of unique cultural ventures as part of its unique cultural vision, according to the report.Speaking ahead of the ceremony, Livnat praised Ashkelon for winning the prize. “I am happy that the minister’s prize for culture and sport, which was initiated last year, has turned into an important [one] in incentivizing and encouraging local authorities to invest in the areas that impact and improve quality of life [for residents],” the website reported.Vaknin expressed gratitude for the prize. “We have held a large cultural revolution in recent years, we have held dozens of festivals and many events in all fields: the environment, art, movies and others,” he said. “This is part of our policy to hold as many cultural events as possible for the entire city’s population and to enrich cultural life,” which he said are policies that will continue.Sderot Conference features handicapped photographersAlongside the political speeches and academic presentations at the Sderot Conference last month, participants were treated to a special desert photography exhibition featuring photographers who are members of the youth organization “Yes We Can,” a group that works for the betterment of handicapped Israelis throughout the country, the Local website reported. The photographs were all taken by handicapped Israelis during their trips through the desert.Founder and director-general of Yes We Can Moti Tzilobon said of the artists and their art, “The [life] experience and tenacity to succeed in overcoming all the challenges and physical disabilities facing them brought successful results and images that professional photographers were proud of,” according to the Local website. “During the exhibition, many guests loved the pictures and even sought to buy some for themselves.”North and South, officers take time to help animalsPolice officers in the North and the South went above and beyond their normal duties in the past week, taking time to rescue animals in need.In the South, a traffic officer responded to a routine call on Highway 40 near Beersheba, but when he arrived he found a calf stuck between two guard rails. The officer managed to carefully free the young cow, which promptly ran back toward his herd, the Local website reported. Police managed to locate the owner of the cows and instructed him to distance his four-legged friends from the road so as not to endanger the animals or passing cars.Later in the week, Yasam special patrol police officers in the northern town of Tuba-Zanghariya noticed two teenagers riding a wounded and emaciated horse during the course of their operations, according to the website. Suspecting that the animal was being abused, the officers contacted animal welfare authorities and the horse was taken to a rehabilitation care facility. The two youths were brought to the police station for investigation and officers said they expected to file an indictment against them, the website reported.Man crushed to death in Sderot industrial accidentA machine crushed a man to death early this week in a work-related accident in the industrial area of Sha’ar Hanegev near Sderot, police said. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. Police were investigating the circumstances of the accident.
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