About Irina

A b o u t
I r i n a ' sW o r k

Irina was born into a family of physicists in 1960 in the city of Kharkov in the Ukraine. Her artistic talent became apparent at any early age. By age six she began to study art seriously, which culminated in acceptance to the Academy of Fine Arts in Saint Petersburg.

The Academy, which has nurtured the greatest classical painters of Russia from the mid-19th century, is considered the preeminent academy of arts in all of Russia.The Academy brought to Irina's rich cultural background the finest classical education plus a demanding, rigorous mastery of skills. Her travels through Europe and the East eventually led to settling, with her husband, in the beautiful city of Haifa, overlooking the Mediterranean. There she founded her studio at the crossroads of many cultures.

Education

1977 - 1983 Academy of Fine Arts, Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Studied two and three-dimensional fine and decorative arts, art history and archictecture. Awarded Masters degree in Art and Architecture: March, 1983.

Professional Expereience

1983-present Contour Graphic Design and Illustration, Haifa, Israel. Poster design for theaters and cultural centers and illustration.

Designed and printed posters (partial)

1996 The Arab Theatre in Israel, "The Kiong is the King".

1995 Bet Hagefen Theatre, Haifa, "Labryinth".

1995 Bedouin Heritage Festival.

1994 National Park Authority in Israel, "Zippori: An Ancient City".

1994 The Nazareth Municipal Theatre and the Belgian Avant-Garde Theatre: a collaboration, "The Ninth Wave".

1994 Bedouin Heritage Festival.

1993 Municipality of Nazareth, "Second Festival of Dance and Song".

1993 The Finnish Shalhevatiya Center, Jerusalem, Israel: four posters.

1992 The French Embassy in Israel, "Music Festival of the Mediterranean".

1989 Youad Song Group, Rami. Galilee.

1989 Defence Committee of Arab Lands, "Day of Land".

1985 Haifa Municipal Theatre, "The Optimist, by Emile Habibi".

1984 Rolnik Keter Publications: 12 posters, "Places in Israel".

Publications

1991-1998 Israel Navigation Company, Ltd., Haifa Israel. Designed and illustrated their magazine. "ZIM"

1993 -1997 The Ministry of Education of Israel, Tel Aviv University and Haifa University. Designed and illustrated 14 educational books.

Illustrated Childrens Books

1997 Giraffe Books, Israel, "The Magic Horse", illustrated and retold. Published in Hebrew and Arabic.

1997 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "Kite".

1997 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "An Olive Tree".

1997 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "I Like to Ride a Bicycle".

1997 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "I'm Careful"

1997 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "I Understand".

1996 Giraffe Books, Israel. "The Flying Turtle", illustrated and retold. Published in Hebrew and Arabic.

1996 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "I Dream".

1996 Dar El Huda Publications, Israel, "A Careful Journey", published in Arabic. Published in Hebrew by Alfa Communications Publications, Israel.

1996 Alfa Communications Publications, Israel, "Britannica Discovery Library for Children". Cover design and illustration for 12 books in the series. Published in Hebrew and Arabic.

1995 Giraffe Books, Israel, "Friends in Colours", illustrated and retold. Published in Hebrew and Arabic.

1995 Lombard Publications, Belgium in cooperation with Sapeer Publications, Tel Aviv, Israel, "Tales from the Bible", a series of 16 volumes.

1995 Apican Publishers, Israel, "Great Fun", published in Hebrew. Published in Arabic by Dar El Huda Publications, Israel.

1995 Shadi Publications, Israel, "The Birth of Jesus".

1994 Apican Publishers, Israel, "King of the Fruits", published in Hebrew. Published in Arabic by Dar El Huda Publications, Israel.

1994 Center for Childrens Arabic Literature, Israel, "The Shy Boy".

1994 Center for Chjildrens Arabic Literature, Israel, "The Glutton Moneky".

1993 Arazim Publications, Israel, "We and the Animals", a series of 16 volumes, published In Hebrew. Published in Arabic by Dar El Huda Publications, Israel.

1991 The Finnish Psychologist's Peace Committee in cooperation with FINNIDA, Helsinky, Finland, "Give us our Childhood".

1989 Tarbuton Publications, Tel Aviv, Israel, "The Time Turtle"w".

1988 Isra-Tav Publications, Tel Aviv, Israel, "Shubi Dubi Tales".

1988 Isra-Tav Publications, Tel Aviv, Israel, "The Wizard of Oz". Published in English by Kidfest International, New York.

1988 Kidfest International, New York, "Let's Sing Together, 102 Most Popular Children's Songs". Two volumes and cassettes.

1986 Kidfest International, New York, "Classic Fairy Tales Series: Alice in Wonderland". Published in Hebrew by Isra-Tav Publications.

1986 Kidfest International, New York, "Classic Fairy Tales Series: Rapunzel". Published in Hebrew by Isra-Tav Publications.

1986 Kidfest International, New York, "Classic Fairy Tales Series: Heidi ". Published in Hebrew by Isra-Tav Publications.

Exhibitions

1993 Municipal Cultural Center, Nazareth, Israel, "Irina Vitalievna Karkabi: A one-person Exhibition".

1986 Sports Center of Haifa, Israel, "Irina Vitalievna Karkabi: A one-person Exhibition".

1984 Haifa City Hall, Israel, "Irina Vitalievna Karkabi: A one-person Exhibition".

1998 ArtExpo, Los Angeles, California, USA, "Irina".

1999 ArtExpo, New York, New York, USA, "Irina".

Permanent Collections

The French Cultural Center, Nazareth, Israel

The Municipality of Nazareth, Nazareth, Israel

Shalhevatiya Finnish Center, Jerusalem, Israel

City Gallery of Nazareth, Israel: Mr. Riad Masarwi, Director

Mr. Harris Dafaranos: Former Consul of Greece in Israel

Mr. Bernard Ruho: Director of the French Cultural Center in Bangkok, Thailand

Mr. I.D. Lindsay: World Energy Council, London, England

Mr. Aziz Rezek: United Nations Council, Vienna, Austria

Mr. Tawfig Toubi: Former member of the Israeli Parliment, Haifa, Israel

Ms. Evelyn Pinkos: Art Dealer, Haifa, Israel

Dr. George Wall: Rainbow Art Gallery, Lahania, Maui, Hawaii