In our living room we have an extraordinary picture on the wall. It shows Israeli soldiers at a long table. The arrangement appears to be inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s famous mural “The Last Supper.” Israeli artist Adi Nes is responsible for this more contemporary version. In 2005, a print fetched $102,000 at Sotheby’s. An original print hangs in Jerusalem at the Israel Museum.
I got a digital version of the photo and had it professionally printed. My father liked it very much. Every time he was with us for the Shabbat meal, he was able to go on and on about the meaningfulness of the work. We never tired of discussing the spiritual dimension of photography.
Whoever visits us inevitably gets their eyes fixed on the picture. And that automatically gets a conversation going. Most see it as the Last Supper. But the group of soldiers is also clearly having a Shabbat meal. I’ve also been asked if I’m the soldier in the middle.
In Israeli art (as in society in general) the soldier is often the...
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