A powerful, blended art and photography exhibition is on display at the Jerusalem Theatre, celebrating the life and mourning the death of Sgt. 1st Class (res.) Yakir Hexter, 26, killed by terrorists on Jan. 8, 2024, in a rocket-propelled grenade attack in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.
Titled “Yakir’s Light,” the exhibition showcases Hexter’s artistic creations developed during his studies in architecture at Ariel University, as well as selections from his personal sketchbook.
At the same time, most of the photographs on display were shot by Yakir’s mother, Chaya Hexter, depicting her grief at her son’s death, and her attempt to find light and beauty amid an endless void.
Some of the additional photographs were taken by Hexter’s fellow soldiers between battles during their service in Gaza, while others offer a glimpse into his life, cut short.
On Wednesday, dozens of family members, friends, local artists and others gathered at the theater for a guided tour of the exhibit led by Chaya. The original event was slated to serve as the opening night of the exhibit in early March, but was postponed because of Israel’s “Operation Roaring Lion,” targeting Iran, which was launched on Feb. 28.
Chaya led JNS on a tour of the exhibition just before the event, starting with a large photo of Yakir in which he appears almost hovering in the air, while dancing at the wedding of one of his best friends, captured by the wedding photographer.
“It shows Yakir is so full of life. He’s wearing a suit with his kipah [yarmulke] in his hand. He is so cool, and it’s such a combination [of formality, spirituality, and playfulness] of who he was,” she said.
Some of the next photos are by Chaya, taken after Yakir’s shivah (mourning period) outside the family’s Jerusalem home, showing the already ripped and faded signs announcing Yakir’s passing with funeral and shivah details.
Chaya said, “You can see that even they [the signs] weren’t everlasting, and it became like a totem pole for me.”
The next display features artistic drawings and sketches of Yakir, including those by people from Israel and around the world, some who didn’t know the Hexter family but were inspired by his legacy.
One of the sketches features a now well-known image of Yakir and his friend and Torah study partner at yeshivah, Sgt. 1st Class (res.) David Schwartz, 26, who died in the same Gaza battle.
The next set of images showcases Yakir’s sketches and doodles, both for school and those he did as part of his personal collection. “You can see his talent. He is just very creative,” Chaya said.
‘Where is your smile?’
Another photograph was taken by a fellow soldier during a previous round of fighting as Yakir and his squad were making their way by foot from the Shejaiya neighborhood in eastern Gaza City, all the way back into Israel.
Chaya shared the details of the photo, saying, “They had barely slept in five weeks, and Yakir’s commander told me he volunteered to carry 90 kilos [almost 200 pounds] of equipment on his back. Just when the soldiers felt they couldn’t walk another step, Yakir turned to his commander and asked playfully, ‘Where is your smile?’ This lifted everyone’s spirits, and they began to run the last three kilometers to the border. That was Yakir—always doing the impossible.”
One of the most stirring of Chaya’s photos is an image of a rotting pomegranate fruit hanging on a tree.
“This is how I felt after he was killed—like a hole in my heart. He was so full of potential like a rimon [pomegranate] full of seeds. There will always be a hole inside of me, in my life,” she said.
The last image on display is a photograph Chaya took of a project Yakir made for school—a functioning lamp composed of wooden skewers and inspired by the well-known Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.
“This is what’s left—Yakir’s light and legacy,” she said.
The curator of the exhibition is Yair Medina, founder of the Jerusalem Art Print Studio, a home for the Jewish arts and crafts community, in Israel and worldwide.
Medina told JNS the exhibition is small, but it shares a very large story. He said that one cannot truly capture the amount of pain or beauty, but the purpose of the display is to share a few moments.
The message he wants people to take away with them from viewing the exhibition is a simple one: “We live in a time of pain, and unfortunately, there is a lot of beauty leaving this planet. I think we should take a piece of this beauty, and it can help us all heal the pain.”
Medina shared that he has already produced at least 20 similar art exhibitions in conjunction with bereaved families all over Israel. He said the projects were “very rewarding, but very difficult.”
One of Yakir’s brothers, Ezra Hexter, has a photograph on display in the exhibition titled ‘Brother’s Last Goodbye,’ in which his hand is seen grasping at Yakir’s fresh grave.
He told JNS the exhibition successfully displays Yakir’s talents and artistic perspectives, including those works that the family only discovered following his death.
“Opening it up to the public so they can see Yakir’s abilities is just very beautiful,” he said.
The “Yakir’s Light” exhibition will be open to the public at the Jerusalem Theatre through May 2, 2026.
