Kosso Eloul, Shlosha

Kosso Eloul, Shlosha, 1974, stainless steel, 119.5 x 307.3 x 142.2 cm. Collection of the MacLaren Art Centre. Gift of Beverley Zerafa and Boris Zerafa, 2001. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid

Shlosha, a public sculpture by internationally known artist Kosso Eloul (1920– 1995), refers to Jewish law and the belief that the world is sustained through three principles: truth, justice and peace. The piece is comprised of three brushed steel blocks, the resiliency of the material offset by the delicate balance of the forms. This tension is central to Eloul’s vision drive to capture the precariousness of life and the search for stability.

Kosso Eloul was born in the Soviet Union, and immigrated to Israel with his family at the age of four. After beginning his studies in fine art in Tel Aviv, Eloul transferred to the Art Institute of Chicago. After serving in World War II, Eloul returned to his practice in Israel, representing that country at the 1959 Venice Biennale. The 1960s were a particularly generative time for the artist, and it was then he developed his unique vocabulary of balanced, geometric sculptures. Eloul lived for a period in Los Angeles, later settling in Toronto in 1969. His practice was internationally recognized, with exhibitions throughout Canada, the United States and Europe. Some of his best-known works remain on view throughout Canada, the United States and Israel. Eloul died in Toronto in 1995.