Today is my birthday. Again.
I am beginning to suspect that birthdays happen more frequently than once a year. But I have no scientific proof, so I will not argue. Instead, I decided to look back.Not at how many years I have lived. I know this number already, thank you very much. But at what happened during the last one. And what a year it was. Paintings, exhibitions, music, Japanese drums, wonderful people, some very difficult days in Israel, and more emotions than I could possibly fit into one canvas. I also started thinking about birthday presents. What do you give someone who has everything? What makes a gift truly unforgettable? And is an original painting a good birthday present? I have a few opinions about that last question. You will not be surprised. When My Paintings Showed Their Other Side One of the most meaningful artistic experiences of 2025 was my solo exhibition in Jaffa. The Other Side of the Canvas: The Story Untold. It opened in April, and the idea was quite unusual. Normally, when you visit an art exhibition, you see the front of a painting. The beautiful side. The finished side. The side the artist has decided to show you. But I wanted people to see something more. The other side. The story behind the painting. My own story. The canvases were displayed in a way that allowed visitors to discover both sides. Because I believe that every painting has a life that begins long before the first brushstroke.
Sometimes it begins with a childhood memory. Sometimes with a person. Sometimes with a dream. And sometimes with something painful that you cannot explain in words. For this exhibition, I also brought works connected to October 7 and the war. Not the easiest subject for an art exhibition. But I don't believe artists should create only comfortable things. Art should sometimes ask difficult questions. Even if the answers are not beautiful. Especially then. And standing there, watching people discover my work, I remembered why I love exhibitions. Not because I enjoy standing beside my paintings pretending to be very important. I am terrible at pretending. But because every visitor brings a different life into the room. And suddenly my paintings are no longer only mine. The Unexpected Experience of Reading My Own Life in a Newspaper Just before the exhibition, something else happened. The Jerusalem Post published a story about me. About my journey from Uzbekistan to Israel. About singing, jewelry, sculpture, painting and all the unexpected turns my life has taken. It is a strange experience to read your own story in a newspaper. You begin to think: Did I really do all this? Apparently, yes. I arrived in Israel many years ago, originally intending to stay for a short time. I had other plans. America was somewhere in those plans. But Israel had a different opinion.And here I am.
Still here. Still creating. Still arguing with my paintings. The article reminded me how many different lives I have lived inside one life.I was a singer.I created jewelry.I opened boutiques.I made sculptures.I began painting seriously during the pandemic.And then, as if all this was not enough, I discovered Japanese Taiko drums.I think my problem is that I am interested in too many things.Fortunately, I don't consider it a serious problem.You can read the story in The Jerusalem Post.
From the Gallery to the Taiko Stage. Another important part of my year was music. Taiko has become much more than a hobby for me. I play with Taiko Life Israel, and I also teach at the academy. There is something extraordinary about these Japanese drums. When you stand in front of a huge drum, you cannot hide behind a polite smile. Your whole body must participate. Your arms. Your legs. Your breathing. Your concentration. And your emotions. In November 2025, our ensemble was part of the International Music Showcase Festival in Jerusalem.
It was wonderful to see Japanese drumming become part of such a creative musical environment in Israel. For me, every performance is another way of painting. Only instead of colour, I use sound. Instead of a canvas, I have space. And instead of brushes, I have drumsticks. Much more dangerous for the furniture, by the way. This connection between Japanese culture and contemporary Israeli art continues to influence my paintings.
The movement. The discipline. The pauses. The energy.
the courage to make one powerful gesture without knowing exactly what will happen next. If you are curious about this world, visit Taiko Life Israel or follow my Facebook page for performances and creative activities.2026: Painting Between War and Peace Then came another year. And another reminder that living in Israel is never completely predictable. I continued painting. Sometimes with joy. Sometimes with anger. Sometimes because I didn't know what else to do with my feelings. During 2026, I found myself writing more about what happens inside an artist when the outside world becomes difficult. In my blog War and Peace, I tried to explain the strange emotional swings we experience here. One day you are planning something wonderful. The next day you are watching the news and wondering whether those plans still make sense. I also wrote about painting when the world feels too much. About Japanese philosophy. About the Year of the Fire Horse.
And about a question that has followed me for years: Do people really need art? I still think the answer is yes. Not because paintings can solve wars or repair everything that is broken. They cannot. But because human beings need more than practical solutions. We need something that speaks to our emotions. Something that reminds us of who we are. And sometimes something that simply makes us smile when the news is terrible. My Happy Place Is Still Full of Surprises
Throughout this year, my gallery in Netanya remained one of the most important places in my life. It is where I paint, experiment, make decisions, change those decisions and occasionally discover that yesterday's brilliant idea was not so brilliant.
It happens. It is also where I meet people who love art. Some are experienced collectors. Some are buying their first original painting. Some come simply because they are curious. And I love them all. Especially when they ask questions. Not only about technique or price. But about what a painting means. Why I chose these colors. Why there is so much movement. Why some paintings feel peaceful and others look as if they are having a serious argument. The conversations are often as interesting as the artworks themselves. And this brings me to something I have been thinking about today.
Birthday gifts. What Do You Give Someone Who Already Has Everything? At a certain age, birthdays become complicated. Not because of the candles. Although finding a cake large enough is becoming a technical challenge. But because we begin to understand the difference between things and memories. Most of us already have enough things. Clothes. Perfume. Watches. Decorations. Electronic devices that become old before we understand how to use them. And for people who are financially successful, the problem becomes even more interesting. What can you give someone who can buy almost anything? I think the answer is something they would never choose for purely practical reasons. Something personal. Something unexpected. Something that has a story. And this is why I believe original art can be one of the most beautiful birthday gifts.Why an Original Painting Is Different from an Expensive Present.
Imagine you receive a painting for your birthday. Not a reproduction. Not a decorative print produced in thousands of copies. An original artwork. Someone stood in front of a blank canvas and created something that had never existed before. Perhaps the artist was happy that day. Perhaps sad. Perhaps thinking about love, the sea, a childhood memory or the strange world we live in. All these feelings became colours, shapes and textures.
And now this painting is yours. You hang it in your home. You see it every morning. Your friends ask about it. Your children grow up with it.Years later, it may remind you of the person who gave it to you.
Of the birthday. Of the period in your life. Of something you felt when you first saw it. A good painting does not become less interesting because a newer model has arrived. It changes with you. .
This is something I find very beautiful about collecting original art. A Gift for People with Taste, Not Just Money
I have met many people who appreciate beautiful things. Some collect paintings. Some collect sculptures. Some love handmade jewelry. Some simply want their home to feel different from every other beautiful apartment. And I understand them. When you have worked hard to create a life you love, you don't necessarily want to fill it with things that everyone else owns. You want something personal. Something with character. Perhaps a dramatic abstract painting that becomes the centre of a living room. Perhaps a quiet blue composition for a private space. Perhaps an unusual sculpture. Or a handmade jewelry piece created especially for one person. The best art gifts for collectors are not always the largest or most expensive. They are the ones that feel right. And if you are looking for unique birthday gifts for art lovers, I would encourage you to look beyond the usual luxury brands. An original artwork can be a much more intimate choice. Of course, I am not suggesting you should buy my paintings instead of diamonds. I too many years making jewelry to say something so irresponsible. I am suggesting you consider both. But How Do You Choose Art for Someone Else? This is the difficult part.
Art is personal. Very personal. You may love a painting full of red, black and powerful movement. Your friend may prefer calm blue water. You may see passion. They may see an approaching disaster. So how do you choose? My advice is to think about the person, not the wall. What makes them happy? What do they dream about? What colours attract them? What kind of stories do they enjoy? Do they love nature? Japan? Music? Travel? Do they appreciate unusual things? And if you are not sure, ask the artist. I love helping people discover which artwork might suit someone they care about. Sometimes a small original painting is perfect. Sometimes a sculpture. Sometimes a unique jewelry piece. And sometimes the best gift is a visit to the gallery, where the birthday person can choose for themselves.
You can explore my original abstract paintings and artworks online. Or come to my Happy Place Gallery in Netanya. I promise not to give you a complicated lecture about contemporary art. Unless you ask. Why Giving Israeli Art Feels Especially Meaningful Today There is another reason this subject touches me. When someone buys a painting from a living Israeli artist, they are doing more than buying an object. They are supporting a person who continues creating. A person who lives here. Who experiences the same uncertainty, beauty, frustration and hope. For collectors in Israel, Europe and the United States, contemporary Israeli art can become a connection to a country that is so often seen only through political headlines. But Israel is also full of musicians. Painters. Writers. Dancers. Sculptors. People who make beautiful things, even during difficult times. I want people to see this Israel too. The Israel that creates. That experiments. That laughs. That continues dreaming. If one of my paintings finds a home in another country, a small part of my life travels with it. I like this thought very much. So, What Did I Really Receive This Year? Now I return to my birthday. Looking back, I realise that the best gifts of this year were not objects. They were experiences. The exhibition in Jaffa. The conversations about my life after The Jerusalem Post article. The music and the people I met through Taiko. The paintings that surprised me. The people who visited my gallery. The collectors who chose to live with my work.
And the possibility to continue doing what I love. Even when life is difficult. Especially then. This year also reminded me that I am not finished becoming myself. I still want to learn. To travel. To create. To perform. To make mistakes. To begin new things. And to paint something tomorrow that I could not have imagined yesterday. Perhaps that is the best birthday present of all. The feeling that there is still so much ahead.
My Birthday Wish for You: If you are celebrating your birthday in October, happy birthday! I wish you something more interesting than simply another successful year. I wish you a year in which you surprise yourself. Try something you have never tried. Visit a place you have never visited. Listen to music you don't usually listen to. Buy a painting because it makes you feel something, even if you cannot explain what. Dance when nobody expects you to dance. And don't wait for a perfect moment to enjoy life. Living in Israel has taught me that perfect moments are not always available. But beautiful moments are everywhere, if we remember to notice them. As for me, I plan to continue painting, sculpting, making jewelry, playing Taiko and doing all the other things that make my life wonderfully complicated. And if you are still wondering what to give someone for their birthday...Well. You know where to find me.
With love from Netanya, Nikita Ben Ami
P.S. My birthday wish is simple: more peace, more music, more colour and more original art in the world.
And perhaps a little less time spent reading the news.
Explore my paintings: https://www.nikita-artist.com/shopFollow my creative adventures: https://www.facebook.com/nikitabenamiDiscover Japanese Taiko: https://www.taikolife.org/
