War, boycotts, and shrinking budgets push Israeli culture to the brink

The Israeli cultural sector is facing severe challenges due to war, international boycotts, and minimal government funding, despite artists' continued high-quality output. Lee He Shulov, CEO of Art Cube Artists' Studios, noted, "We just have to keep going with our artistic work." Public spending on culture in Israel is a mere 0.18% of the state budget, significantly lower than the OECD average of 1.2%. Yossi Singer, head of the Israeli Artists' Association, stated, "That is probably the lowest of any of the OECD countries." This lack of funding impacts over 250,000 households reliant on the arts and hinders Israel's ability to use culture as a diplomatic tool, especially post-October 7. Singer lamented, "No one in the government is listening," criticizing the lack of strategic support for the arts.