Mifal Hapayis announced the winners of the 2026 Landau Prize for Arts and Sciences, marking the 25th year of one of Israel’s prominent awards recognizing excellence in culture, research, and science and the arts, the organization said on Tuesday.
The total value of the prizes is NIS 1.35 million. Each winner will receive NIS 150,000, including the recipient of a special Avigdor Yitzhaki Prize for nonprofit civil society organizations working to promote dialogue and bridge divides in Israeli society.
The special Avigdor Yitzhaki Prize was awarded to Desert Stars, an organization that works to build young Bedouin leadership in the Negev and promote a stronger Israeli society, according to the organization’s English-language website.
Winners in the arts
The arts winners include dancer Iris Erez in the dance category, Shahar Marom in children’s theater, the Jerusalem Piyyut Ensemble in the instrumental ensemble category, and Ido Dolev in film art direction.
The judging committee praised Erez as a performer whose long career reflects artistic courage, physical sensitivity, and a deep commitment to dance. Marom was honored for his work in children’s theater, including his role in transforming the Train Theater in Jerusalem into a multidisciplinary center for children’s culture.
The Jerusalem Piyyut Ensemble was recognized for preserving and renewing the piyyut (Jewish liturgical poem), including traditions from North Africa, the Middle East, Spain, and Ashkenazi traditions. Dolev was honored for his work as a leading art director in Israeli film and television, as well as for his role in training young designers.
Winners in science and research
The science winners include Prof. Dan Peer of Tel Aviv University in nanotechnology, Prof. Irit Dinur of the Weizmann Institute of Science in computer science, Prof. Alexandra Kalev of TAU in sociology, and Prof. Leora Bilsky of TAU in Holocaust research.
Peer is the director of the Laboratory of Precision NanoMedicine at TAU and vice president of research and development at the university. Dinur is a professor of computer science at the Weizmann Institute, where her research focuses on the foundations of computer science and combinatorics.
Kalev is a professor of sociology and anthropology at TAU whose research focuses on organizations, work, law, inequality, and diversity. Bilsky is a TAU professor of law who holds the Benno Gitter Chair in Human Rights and Holocaust Research.
'A quarter century of recognition’
Mifal Hapayis chairman Itzik Larry said that the prize “marks 25 years, a quarter century, of recognition for excellence, creativity, and research in Israel.”
“We are proud to award nine prizes this year to outstanding artists and scientists who have made a significant contribution to Israeli culture, art, and science,” Larry said.
“This year, alongside the traditional Landau Prizes, we are awarding a special prize in memory of Avigdor Yitzhaki to Desert Stars for its impressive work in bridging and dialogue within Israeli society,” he added.
Larry said Yitzhaki believed in the power of culture and civil society to connect people and strengthen the social fabric.
“Excellence, creativity, science, and social dialogue are the pillars of a strong and functioning society, and Mifal Hapayis is proud to recognize and support all of them,” he said.
The winners were chosen by professional judging committees in each field, made up of scientists, previous Landau Prize winners, art critics, leading artists, academics, and other experts.