By COLlive reporter
Israeli sculptor and experimental artist Yaacov Agam was honored with the Warrior for Truth Award during the annual gala of the Algemeiner newspaper in New York City.
Agam famously created the World’s Largest Chanukah Menorah at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 59th Street in New York City. Sponsored by the Lubavitch Youth Organization, the 32-foot-high, 4,000-pound steel structure was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest.
Agam, best known for his contributions to optical and kinetic art, surprised the dinner guests with a print of one of his Magic Rainbow series, pointing out how the rainbow was Hashem’s gift to the world after the Great Flood.
The event, held at Cipriani, 25 Broadway, was attended by over 600 people, who gathered in support of The Algemeiner, a Yiddish and English publication founded by Chabad journalist Gershon Ber Jacobson.
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Honorees in attendance at the event included Miloš Zeman, President of Czech Republic, Israel’s Consul General in New York Dani Dayan and activists Stuart and Robbi Force.
Other attendees included National Security Council member Victoria Coates; Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein; legal scholar Alan Dershowitz; World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder; Refet Kaplan of Fox News; artist Ron Agam; among a number of community and industry leaders.
Zeman spoke forcefully about the need for unconditional support for Israel and called on countries to move their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Algemeiner Editor Dovid Efune spoke about the challenges faced by Jews in the Information Age.
Agam, who was introduced by longtime Jewish leader Abraham Foxman, spoke about the power of visual art to bring people together.
