The Wohl Centre serves as a convention center for Bar-Ilan University

Bar-Ilan University

Bar-Ilan University is a university in Ramat Gan of the Tel Aviv District, Israel.Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is now Israel's second-largest academic institution. It has nearly 26,800 students and 1,350 faculty members...

 in Ramat-Gan, Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. It was built between 2001 and 2005 and covers about 42,000 square feet (3,900 square meters). The building, designed by the internationally-renowned Daniel Libeskind

Daniel Libeskind

Daniel Libeskind, is an American architect, artist, and set designer of Polish-Jewish descent. Libeskind founded Studio Daniel Libeskind in 1989 with his wife, Nina, and is its principal design architect...

 and a local architecture firm, the Heder Partnership, has been noted for its stark exterior and uncluttered interior. In 2006, the Wohl Centre won a RIBA

Riba

Riba means one of the senses of "usury" . Riba is forbidden in Islamic economic jurisprudence fiqh and considered as a major sin...

 International Award for its architecture.

Design

The building, which was Daniel Libeskind's first in Israel, was built on a relatively small budget. The ILS

Israeli new sheqel

The Israeli New Shekel is the currency of the State of Israel. The shekel is divided into 100 agorot...

43 million ($7.2 million) it cost to construct the center came in part from British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 philanthropist

Philanthropist

A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...

 Maurice Wohl

Maurice Wohl

Maurice Moshe Wohl CBE was a British businessman and philanthropist.-Biography:Maurice Wohl was born in the East End of London to Eastern European parents. At a young age, Wohl became a property developer creating 'United Real Property Trust'...

.

Three long rectangular "bars" comprise the building's base, above which rests a 1,000-seat auditorium. The center's angular form evokes an open book and, according to Libeskind, embodies "the interrelation between the dynamics of knowledge and the unifying role of faith." Hebrew letters inspired the shapes of the windows, which cut across a gold-colored aluminum exterior.