Tamara de Lempicka (1894–1980) was a daring Art Deco artist whose influence extends beyond the art world into the realms of fashion and popular culture. Her iconic works continue to attract art collectors around the globe and have inspired designers, stage musicals, and contemporary art movements.

The film “Art and Survival – The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka” (directed by Julie Rubio) portrays Lempicka’s journey as a groundbreaking artist, an immigrant, and a woman who lived beyond social conventions. It explores the aesthetic and social power of her work and features rare, previously unseen materials, including 8mm home movies, narrated by actress Anjelica Huston.

Screenings will take place as part of TLVFest 2025 – the Tel Aviv International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. The festival serves as a unique cultural meeting point, held annually at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque. Over ten days, dozens of films are presented—many of which are not distributed in Israel—alongside workshops and special projects with filmmakers from Israel and abroad.

Between October 23 and November 1, 2025, five screenings of the film will be held. Screening times will be announced soon on the festival’s website.

Born in 1894, she belonged to a wealthy family that exposed her to art and culture from an early age. As a child, she traveled across Europe and was deeply influenced by Renaissance art, which left a lasting mark on her style. In 1915 she married Tadeusz Łempicki. After the Russian Revolution, she was forced to leave her previous life and moved to Paris, where she adopted the name de Lempicka and quickly became part of the city’s vibrant art scene.

In 1920s Paris, she established her distinctive style—a blend of sharp geometric lines, decorative structures, and sensual figurative portraits. She excelled at portraying strong, elegant, and independent women—not as passive models, but as powerful figures commanding their space. This style made her one of the most recognizable artists of the Art Deco era.

In 1940, with the rise of fascism in Europe, she emigrated to the United States. Although she struggled to maintain her international status during those years, her work has been rediscovered in recent decades and is now regarded as that of one of the most important and valuable female artists in the art market.