The Role of Public Policy in Gender Inequality in the Arts in Israel

This article deals with Israel’s cultural policy and public funding for the arts—a nascent, under-developed research field in Israeli scholarship. The article focuses on the plastic arts and film, presenting data about the system of budget allocation and the structure of relevant Ministry of Culture and Sports decision-making committees. The discussion takes a gender perspective, focusing on obstacles women artists face in accessibility to public budgets for the arts. These challenges, we argue, are compounded when considering additional and overlapping identity categories. We apply intersectional analysis—a perspective that considers positionality and social background, including gender, class, race, nationality, and religion—and conclude with suggestions for improving public policy for the arts.