Dizengoff Street in central Tel Aviv is one of the city’s most iconic streets. Originally described as the “Champs-Élysées of Tel Aviv”, it peaked in popularity during the 1970s and the opening of Tel Aviv’s most significant shopping mall, the Dizengoff Center in the southern portion of it. in the early 2000s, it seemed the street has lost its magic, but in recent years, however, Dizengoff Street has seen something of a revival, with cafes and restaurants, boutique clothing stores, and numerous design shops opening up.
The street – named after Tel Aviv’s first mayor, Meir Dizengoff – begins at its junction with Ibn Gvirol Street. It continues for about half a kilometer until it meets King George Street, where it serves as a residential street only.
The interesting part begins after it crosses King George Street, where it houses the Dizengoff Center, which is a Tel-Aviv icon in its own right. This was the first major shopping mall in the city, which opened gradually in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The mall features over 400 stores and is unique in design in that it is situated on both sides of Dizengoff Street, with bridges connecting the two buildings. The Dizengoff Center houses many specialty stores as well as the regular stores found in every Israeli mall, a cinema, and a large parking lot.
The part from Tchernichovsky Street to Arlozorov Street is considered the heart of the street and includes many entertainment venues and shops that attract domestic and foreign tourists. The main focal points in this section are Dizengoff Square and Passage Hood, where the Cameri Theater used to be and now houses the Beit Lessin Theater.
Dizengoff Street and those surrounding it, particularly in the southern half of the street, feature some of Tel Aviv’s iconic Bauhaus Buildings which have given Tel Aviv the nickname “the White City”.
Dizengoff Square
And in the middle of it all – Dizengoff Square, with its famous fountain, “Fire and Water”. This is another one of the iconic sights of Tel Aviv. The square was built in 1934 and named after Zina Dizengoff, Meir Dizengoff’s wife.
The fountain which sits in the center of the square was designed by Yaacov Agam, one of the pioneers of the ‘kinetic art’ movement, and opened in 1986. In its original form, the fountain mechanism was designed so that four times a day it ran a 15-minute show, which included a rotation of the three middle wheels of the statue, hosing water at varying heights and a flame of fire erupting from the center of the upper wheel. At the same time, various musical pieces were played on the speakers.
The work reflects the style of Op Art, which Agam was known for. The change and movement of the fountain were explained as a visual expression of the spirit of Judaism, while the connection between fire and water was an expression of Jewish mysticism. The fountain was fully restored in recent years having previously been neglected and is once again an icon of Tel Aviv.
The northern part of the street – from Arlozorov Street to the Tel Aviv port – also includes a commercial part, but its character is more local and is used (next to Ben Yehuda street) as a commercial center for this part of Tel Aviv. In its northern part, the Tel Aviv center police station is located and is known as a center for wedding dress stores and hair salons. not something relevant for you as a tourist, but you never know…
The film Dizengoff 99 (1979), which has become an Israeli cult classic, describes the way of life around the street and how it changed over the years.
