Esther Else Joel was born on March 2, 1895 in Hamburg, Germany. Joel was greatly interested in the arts and between 1915–1920 she went to study at the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg. After completion of her studies she moved to Berlin in 1920. While in Berlin she studied arts with Alexander Archipenko and Ludwig Meidner at the Berlin University of the Arts. Berlin-Joel had her first personal exhibition in 1925, in Hamburg. In 1922 Esther married Dr. Haim Berlin, and their son Dan was born in 1923. At the end of 1925, the family immigrated to Mandatory Palestine and settled in Tel Aviv. In 1930, Haim Berlin and Esther divorced, and she continued to publish under the name E. Berlin-Joel. Following the movement for Hebraization of surnames, Esther changed her last name to Berli-Joel. Berli-Joel was a prolific graphic designer and artist, she had many exhibitions, including 12 solo exhibitions. She designed many posters, coat of arms and emblems. Berli-Joel also published several books showing her collective works. In 1936, she received first prize for her book of paintings about Haifa. Esther Berlin-Joel died on March 7, 1972 and is buried in Haifa, Israel.
Coats of arms
Berlin-Joel designed the coats of arms of many organizations. She was also approached to design the coat of arms for Holon and Haifa and suggested options for the Jerusalem coat of arms. , Israel, coat of Arms designed by E. Berlin Joel
Haifa coat of arms
In early 1934, Hassan Bey Shukri, mayor of Haifa started the process of selecting a coat of arms for the city of Haifa. In July 1935, an external committee decided on a competition with a prize of 15 Palestine pound. By 1936, the committee, comprizing with additional judges including an artist, architect and an engineer, couldn't find a winner, but was impressed with the designs suggested by Esther Berlin-Joel. The committee decided to ask Berlin-Joel to finish the design, with specific guidelines provided. Berlin-Joel designed several scatches, combining Mount Carmel and the sea. On April 22, 1936 the committee conviened for the final time to select the design and approve. The Haifa coat of arms was officially approved by June 1936.
Jerusalem coat of arms
In 1943, Berli-Joel approached Mustafa al-Khalidi, mayor of Jerusalem and provided several suggestions for the City of Jerusalem's coat of arms. The city hall adopted one of Berli-Joel's suggestions on May 20, 1943, but required the approval of the College of Arms. Due to the conditions during World War II, this approval was delayed. Following the death of al-Khalidi in 1944, and disagreements within city fractions for a rotation of Arab-Jewish mayors, the British High Commissioner disbanded the council and appointed an all-British council starting on July 11, 1945. The discussion on the coat of arms was archived.
