Coca (Bracha Beatrice) Lapidoth 

1935, Pitești, Romania - 1985, Tel Aviv, Israel

Woman in the Archway in Old Safed, 1970s

Original Hand-Signed Gouache Painting -

the 1970s

Artwork Description

Executed in gouache on paper, this highly expressive, textured composition by Coca Lapidoth features a solitary female figure framed within an arched stone doorway of a historic structure in the Old City of Safed. To the left, a heavy, domed building with an arched entrance anchors the scene, while a textured stone house with a window opening dominates the right side of the composition.

Lapidoth uses raw, gestural wiping, drybrush work, and bold dark outlines to create dynamic surface movement. The earthy palette centers on deep umbers, terracottas, and charcoal black, contrasted by vivid pops of vermilion red in the figure’s dress and doorway accents, set against a swirling blue and cream sky backdrop.

Style & Movement

  • Expressive Modernism / Printmaking Expressionism: Employs gestural, graphic mark-making, monotype-like wiping, and heavy contouring to evoke mood, architectural weight, and drama.

  • Mid-Century Israeli Modernism / School of Safed Influence: Mirrors the iconic architectural themes of historic Israeli quarters—specifically the arched doorways, stone courtyards, and mystical atmosphere characteristic of Safed (Tzfat) and Old Jaffa.

Themes & Motifs

  • Thresholds & Framing: The figure framed inside the arched entryway emphasizes themes of passage, protection, and watching from within.

  • Historic Mediterranean Architecture: Stone arches, domed roofs, and textured masonry highlight traditional regional building styles and ancient urban quarters.

  • Solitude & Atmosphere: The interplay between dark, heavy architecture and the lone red-clad figure creates a quiet, mysterious narrative presence.


Artist Name: Coca Lapidoth


Title: Woman in the Archway in Old Safed


Signature Description: Hand-signed lower right


Technique: Gouache on paper


Size: 35 x 50 cm / 13.78" x 19.69" inch


Frame: The painting unfarmed.


Condition: Very good condition

Artist's Biography:

Coca Lapidoth (Israeli - Romanian, 1932-1985)

Coca (Bracha Beatrice) Lapidoth, painter, born 1935, Pitești, Romania.
From 1964 lived and worked in Safed.

Education
Painting with Stefan Alexander
Avni Institute, Tel Aviv

Awards and Prizes
1949 Lenin Prize, Romania
1964 Histadrut Prize for young artists.

Coca Lapidoth (December 16, 1932 - January 3, 1985) was an Israeli painter.

Coca Lapidot was born in the Romanian city of Pitesti. Already in her early childhood years, she showed great talent in painting, and won the Lenin Prize at the age of 14.
In 1950 she immigrated to Israel with her family and lived in Tel Aviv and Safed.

In 1962 she joined the Association of Painters and Sculptors in Israel and in 1964 the Association of Artists in Safed. In Safed, she exhibited her works in a private gallery.
In addition to being an active painter and exhibitor in solo and group exhibitions, she has taught painting and art.
She married in Israel and had two daughters.

Studies
Lapidoth began studying painting with Stefan Alexander and then studied for a number of years at the Avni Institute in Tel Aviv. Among her teachers at the Avni Institute were Moshe Mokadi, Yehezkel Streichman, Avigdor Stematsky and Yehiel Krize.
She later studied art teaching and worked for many years as an art teacher in schools and teaching painting to adults.

Painting style

Coca's painting style was initially figurative and abstract. She often painted in oil on canvas, as well as on on paper in a style unique to her. She later painted in watercolor and acrylic.
She painted on a large scale, inspired by the spectacular landscape of the country, believing that man is the pattern of his birth landscape. This belief led to the creation of images that have transparency of figures and scenery, which she created in the style of Hard-Edge (style of abstract painting characterized by geometric shapes with sharply defined edges and often in bright colors, e.g., abrupt transitions are found between color areas. Color areas are often of one unvarying color. The Hard-edge painting style is related to Geometric abstraction, Op Art, Post-painterly Abstraction, and Color Field painting).
This period in her work abounded with paintings inspired by the stories of the Bible - the creation of the world, the Deluge, David and Goliath and more.

Solo Exhibitions

1972 The Bible stories, Bat Yam Museum of Art
1971 Oils and Drawings, Shalom Aleichem House, Tel Aviv
1967 Black and White, Mabat Contemporary Art Gallery, Tel Aviv
1966 Coca Lapidoth - Solo Exhibition, The Gallery 220, Tel-Aviv
1961 Shulamit Gallery, Tel Aviv

Group Exhibitions

1978 Ramat Gan Museum of Israeli Art
1972 Shalom Alechem House, Tel Aviv
1969 Art Festival, Painting & Sculpture in Israel, The Exhibition Grounds, Tel Aviv
1967 General Exhibition, Art in Israel, Tel Aviv Museum of Art
          Artists in Israel for the Defense, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Helena Rubinstein Pavilion
1966 The Country Landscapes Exhibition, Zaritsky Artists House, Tel Aviv
1963 / 1965 Central Exhibition, Art in Isreal, Tel Aviv Museum of Art
1962 Young Artists, Painting and Sculpture, Zaritsky Artists House, Tel Aviv.

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