START Collection 3.94

START was established in 2008 by the collector Serge Tiroche. It is the first art incubator project in Israel. Through a variety of programs, it aims to assist artists, curators and collectors make their first steps in the art world, and seeks to promote Israeli contemporary art internationally.

START envisions an environment in which local artists can flourish, both creatively and economically. Conscious of the difficulties that young artists face at the early stages of their career and the gaps in the education they receive, START mentors, guides and finances a select group of young talents.

Equally important, START helps young collectors make their first acquisitions and through the Curating START program, now also provides a platform for emerging curators.

START also cooperates with Museums, Select Hotels, Galleries, Art Fairs, Auction Houses, the media, as well as independent curators to promote and expose works from it's collection, or to facilitate the commissioning of site-specific artworks.

To support young artists in the first years of their professional career, START acquires a body of works and establishes an on-going dialogue with the artists, providing them with opportunities for public exposure and introductions to leading galleries, curators and collectors. It also offers studio space and occasionally launches artists at art fairs.

Today, START's collection counts over 700 works by some 150 Israeli artists from multiple ethnic backgrounds, working in all mediums, styles and techniques. The collection truly captures the diversity of Israeli Contemporary Art and is perhaps the largest collection of its kind in the past decade, casting a broad net over a complex set of narratives and discourses.