Kobi Alexander: Art fan
Photo: Reuters
Kobi Alexander's last purchase
Alexander purchases entire artwork collection by artist Ilana Goor estimated at hundreds of thousands of dollars. Goor is a friend who designed all of Alexander's homes
Just before he made the FBI's most wanted list, Israeli millionaire and founder of Comverse Kobi Alexander found the time to buy – and pay for – massive art works made by a close friend for an undisclosed amount of money. In the meantime, Alexander found himself a fugitive from justice and running away from the law.
The artwork, a series of heavy iron structures made by the artist Ilana Goor, was displayed earlier this year as part of an art exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art as an exhibit titled "Hachlaot" (hybrids). The entire collection is reportedly worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Despite his reported financial wows since he was wanted by the FBI for alleged financial shenanigans, Alexander paid for the artwork immediately. Goor declined to disclose the amount Alexander paid for the work, which included a rusted iron plow from the 1920s which was coated with golden leaves.
"He bought the entire collection and paid for it on the spot," Goor said, adding that coating the plow with gold alone cost her USD 12,000.
Goor said that Alexander had purchased the giant iron pieces because he is "an Israeli in his soul loves the country, and he felt connected to the exhibit because it deals with our land. I connected Arab and Jewish tools from different eras I have been collecting for years. Kobi likes that. He is a humble man and a close friend of mine."
Goor and Alexander are old friends, neighbors, and colleagues. She is the one charged with designing his luxury homes all over the world, and he buys her artwork to hang in his homes. In the past Goor designed Alexander's mansion in Caesarea and these days she is working on designing his luxury apartment he bought in New York.
Goor defended Alexander and said that he was a "very honest man. He did what all other American companies do but was not instructed properly. He got some bad advice and got involved in something he would never have done on his own. He was really upset from that."
Kobi Alexander is the founder of the Israeli high-tech company Comverse and is wanted by the FBI for alleged financial wrongdoings. After fleeing the law in the US, Alexander was recently found and arrested in the African country of Namibia and has posted bail. He is awaiting extradition.
