The America-Israel Cultural Foundation was established in 1939 to support the growth and development of a Jewish national home.
[5] In 1977, the AICF created a chapter in Washington, D.C.[6] Early recipients included Daniel Barenboim, Itzhak Perlman, Daniel Libeskind (for accordion), Pinchas Zukerman, Miriam Fried, Rami Bar-Niv, Yefim Bronfman, and by 2015, over 17,000 young artists had been supported.
[7] The foundation was in danger of closing in the wake of losses caused by the Ponzi scheme run by Bernard Madoff.
In 2019, in celebration of its 80th anniversary, AICF launched the ICA Awards (Israeli Culture & Arts Awards), to recognize "the most impactful Israeli artists... for their contributions to the global cultural landscape".
[11] The inaugural recipients of the award, announced on October 28, 2019, are Hanna Azoulay Hasfari (theater), Ohad Naharin (dance), Ron Leshem (literature), Idan Raichel (music), and Vania Heymann (film).