Jacob Steinhardt (1887-1968) was an Israeli painter and woodcut artist.

The painter and graphic artist Jakob Steinhardt, born in 1887 in the city of Zerkow in Posen, is on of the most important German-Jewish artists of the 20th century. At 1906 he attended the art school in berlin, there he met Louis Cornith in the field of arts and Struk in the field of wood engraving.
When word war 1 broke he enlisted to the German army where he served in the eastern front. After the war he married Minni Gumpert. After the Nazi came to power at 1933 they immigrated to Israel.

Jacob Steinhardt was a painter and a wood engraver. He was interested on biblical and Jewish subjects. Steinhardt participated in the Berlin Secession. He was on of the most influential German-Jewish people in Israel. He founded an art school at 1934, in 1948, he became chairman of the graphics department at Bezal art school academy. In 1954-1957 he became the director of the Bezalel.

The well known German painter Louis Corinth and Henri Matisse put revealed him the secrets of the color techniques. The Jewish artist, Herman Shturk, had favorite Steinhardt from his students and exposed him the techniques of the graphic art. Steinhardt was drawn to wood carving and has focused on this technique which suited to his abstinent character.

Steinhardt painted and carved things that accompanied his life: Jerusalem, Jewish potriates, Allyes and towns. Steinhardt had created a complete new world in his paintings. at 1955 he was among the 7 artists whose works were sent to the international Exhibition at San Paolo in Brazil. There he achieved first place.

Steinhardt has influenced many Israeli artists. There were wasn’t any Retrospective exhibition of his works since the 60s. Jacob Steinhardt didn’t get the honor he was worthy to get.
The Jewish Museum Berlin houses the largest Steinhardt collection in the world, including numerous graphic artworks and unpublished documents donated by Josefa Bar-On Steinhardt, the artist’s daughter. The museum owns paintings, several hundred print graphics, and a collection of books illustrated by the artist.
Steinhardt died in 1968. He is buried in Nahariya.