About us

The Center for Contemporary Art is Israel’s foremost institution for the commissioning and presentation of experimental contemporary art, and as such is a vibrant place of inspiration, provocation, and reflection. Situated in the heart of Tel Aviv, the CCA is a registered nonprofit organization that produces four to six unique large-scale exhibitions annually, often focusing on time-based or site-specific practices by outstanding local and international artists. Along with exhibitions, the CCA organizes a wide variety of public programming, including panels, screenings, artist talks, and performances that challenge perceived notions and stimulate debate, experimentation, and engagement.

The CCA is housed in a municipal building that contains two exhibition spaces and an auditorium in its approximately 300 square meter facilities. These spaces often come to life through solo exhibitions, and have housed the work of major international artists who have not shown in Israel before, including Marina Abramovic, Sharon Lockhart, Gary Hill,  Rosa Barba, and Christian Jankowski. Many important Israeli artists have had their first institutional solo exhibitions at the CCA, including Yael Bartana, Guy Ben Ner, Roee Rosen, Nir Evron, Michal Helfman, and Nira Pereg. Most exhibitions are accompanied by catalogues with commissioned texts that contextualize these artists’ practices and further the discussions they spur among Israeli and international audiences.

HISTORY
The Center for Contemporary Art was founded in 1998 to promote time-based contemporary artistic practices in Israel. Operating from a small room at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque, the CCA revolutionized the art world in Israel by presenting the most cutting-edge local and international artwork. In addition to a series of video and experimental cinema screened from 1998 to 2005 at the Cinematheques throughout the country (Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Rosh Pina, and Sderot), the CCA initiated and curated Blurrr – International Performance Art Biennial (2007-2009) and VideoZone – International Video Art Biennial (2002-2008); established the Fund for Video-Art and Experimental Cinema to fund Israeli video art and experimental film; produced Artattack, a television program dedicated entirely to video art, broadcast from 2001 to 2004 on community television channels throughout the country; and founded the Video Archive that contains over five thousands video works from the 1960s to the present by Israeli and international artists.

In November 2005, the Tel Aviv Municipality granted the CCA with its own building in the Rachel and Israel Pollak Gallery, containing an auditorium, two exhibition spaces, and a charming entrance square, where the CCA presents its renowned exhibitions, projects, screenings, lectures, and performances. The CCA is an essential component of the cultural infrastructure in Israel and is committed to continuing to engage audiences with groundbreaking contemporary art.