Written by Ruth Cohen

On April 12^th, Ursula Malbin will have her ninetieth birthday, which does not prevent her from driving around the countryside with her little black jeep. She still finds very secret comers with ancient stone and ceramic objects which inspire her, but her search for truth remains her foremost interest. Her contribution of the Haifa Sculpture Garden, and her fight to maintain this gift to all of Israel's citizens, is Ursula's way of
saying "thank you" to this country.

Ursula Malbin, from Ein Hod, invites you to join an open party celebrating her 90^th birthday in the Sculpture Garden, the "Mitzpor Shalom", or "Vista of Peace" in Haifa, a project she's been fighting for and cultivating since its creation 30 years ago, in the framework of her desire to speak art and love with all the citizens of Israel, and the
world.

Whoever strolls around the artists' village of Eןn Hod cannot help but be impressed by the life-sized bronze sculptures decorating the little garden around her house.
Whoever has the privilege of entering her house will be impressed with harmony and beauty, and by her collection of lovely artifacts she has found in the area of the village. In the middle of her cluttered studio stands a sign with the inscription: "Next week I will get organized".

The worst student in the class

Ursula was born in Berlin, Germany. "When I was ten I joined a Zionist youth movement, where I felt the best. I felt that I was accepted as myself. At school I was the worst student in the class. I barely made it to the next grade!"
When she was 15 her class had an intelligence test, in which only two people gave the correct answers. Those two people were the best student of the class and Ursula, worst student. She developed on her own a different type of intelligence, based not on learning, but on feeling and observation.

When Ursula was 16, Hitler rose to power. She thought about making Aliya  (immigration to Israel). To do this she needed to have a profession that was desired in Israel. Two boys in the Zionist movement told her they were learning carpentry, but that this was not a profession for a girl. "I joined the study of carpentry and became
the first woman in Germany's carpentry guild to gain a professional diploma in this field." She wasn't accepted to the German Art Academy because of her Jewishness.
Although the professor who tested her said that she was a great talent, of the kind he hadn't seen in many years. Ursula resolved to taking private lessons. The first teacher was a Jew, but a very bad teacher. The second was not Jewish, but for fear of the Nazis, he taught her temporarily and privately in her home.

Ursula understood that she must leave Germany. "I sold a hand-woven carpet I had inherited from my grandparents. With the money, I bought a camera and a swimsuit,  and with the remaining 40 francs and no passport, I left Germany as a refugee, by way of Geneva. When I crossed the border to Switzerland, I was detained for three days
for traveling without a passport. The Swiss authorities did not believe I was a Jew, so a Rabbi was called. When he arrived he asked me questions about the Jewish faith and heard me sing Jewish songs that I knew. He declared that I was Jewish and I was sent on my way - with the condition that I remain in Switzerland no more than three days,
otherwise, they would send me back to Germany.
Ursula did not return to Germany. She arrived at the Jewish community in Geneva, where she received some financial help and acceptance into a Geneva art academy.

Her studies in the academy were fraught with misunderstandings and fights with her teachers. Ursula has always gone her own way. She has never compromised her artistic standards, her individual taste. She has always stood up for her true spirit and feelings, even if it was against academic rules and standards. She decided to leave the
Geneva academy. Each day she went to swim in a lake in the town. There she met a young artist who invited her to a free course for artists. Ursula went, and felt an affinity with one of the course partners. His name was Henri Paquet. "They told me that he was a very important sculptor, and I became attracted to him very quickly. Soon after, we got married, but we were so completely different. He was so delicate, introverted and soft, and I was aggressive... and this difference between us did me good. "Sixty years ago a daughter was born to the couple. For a long time Ursula lived in the shadow of her famous husband. He was working, but very slowly and very little, but each of his works were sold directly after completion.
"He was an excellent sculptor", she says. "I worked, too, but nobody believed that I was also a sculptor."

With time, Ursula became known as a great sculptor, and her works were sold and displayed publicly worldwide.

My way to give and say thanks

In 1964, as a tourist from Switzerland, Ursula came to Israel and immediately fell in love with the views and with the people. At age 50, after a long search for a place she thought would be good for her work and spirit, she came to Ein Hod. She bought a big stone house and settled there, but shared her time between Ein Hod, where she received ideas for sculpture, and her house in Switzerland, where she finished her large works and then had them cast. In 1970, when her yard in Ein Hod became too full of sculptures, Ursula decided she wanted to make a sculpture garden in a public place in a big city.

"I didn't build the country", she explains. "I wasn't here in the hard years. This is my way to contribute something to the country and say "thanks".

Ursula went on a search, to find a good place for her sculptures, and found a lovely place in the Carmel, overlooking Haifa, the Bahai Gardens, and a magnificent view of the sea. It was a very artistic and difficult project. Ursula was the first woman in the world to build a sculpture garden. All of the sculptures are the work of her own hands, and all of them are donated to the public.

Most of the people she faced could not understand her way, and the importance she gave to art. It was very hard to go against Ursula's will.

Ursula didn't give up, and her garden became a fact

Today stand there twenty nine sculptures. All the work Ursula did by herself, and with her own money. She began with an architectural plan, prepared a basis for the sculptures, transported her sculptures to Israel, and placed them in her garden.

To this day she visits the garden from time to time and takes care to bring it to public consciousness.

The idea is that more and more people will visit and enjoy the beauty of the art in the sculpture.

A lot of time, to make a round, to think and understand.

Today Ursula works most purely, and doesn't commit to making new works. "I love very much my age", she says with laughter. "I feel free. I'm not committed anymore to sculpture. I have a lot of time to make a round, and most importantly - to think."

A friend in Eןn Hod cooperated with the Haifa municipality to prepare for her 90^th birthday in the sculpture garden. This celebration is open to the public, with free admission for all. Her family from abroad will come to share in her happiness, and she hopes to see a big crowd - who likes heart and beauty!

The public hopes that the municipality will share their view of the sculpture garden as an historic monument.

The public hopes the municipality will preserve only the sculpture garden. Her sculptures will continue, and stand long after she leaves.