The Cardiologist's Emotional Testimony: "The Drawings Emerged from the Letters"

A stranger entering the home of Dr. Leonardo Greenberg in Be'er Sheva would undoubtedly believe that the person living there is an artist. Not just any artist, but a very unique one, for when approaching the artworks hanging on the walls for a closer look, it becomes evident that all the paintings are made up of Hebrew Aleph-Bet letters. Some letters are tiny to the point of invisibility, while others are large and form the center and main part of the painting.

However, Leonardo is not an artist by profession; he is a heart doctor - a cardiologist. "I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina," he narrates, "I grew up in a non-religious family, but I was always an idealist and loved the country and the Hebrew language. I was very active in the Jewish community in Argentina, where I also became acquainted with the prayer book and learned the language that I connected with very much. Yes, I always loved the Hebrew language."

In 1980, he came to Israel for the first time and worked for about four years at Beilinson Hospital in the heart surgery department. "Afterward, I returned to Argentina to specialize in cardiology and immigrated again to Israel in 2003. Since then, I've been here."

Art with Meaning

Upon resettling permanently in Be'er Sheva, Leonardo discovered that finding work in his desired medical field wasn't easy. Despite his extensive investment in medical studies both in Israel and abroad, he found himself without a job and searching for an area to work in for his livelihood.

During that time, he had plenty of free time, which he used to listen to hidabrut lectures. "In one of the lectures, a rabbi explained that when you write the word 'tree' [עץ] in Hebrew, you can actually see a picture of a tree in the letters, and then I decided I wanted to try it myself," he explains.

Leonardo took a paper and pencil, and within a few minutes, he created an amazing piece of art. Then he discovered something else—if he writes the word 'tree' twice, he can create a Chanukah menorah. This discovery led to another, as he suddenly found that Hebrew letters take on various shapes, and by designing them in the right orientation, they can resemble a Torah scroll, portraits of people and animals, and even landscape images.

"I started investing heavily in this, dedicating time day and night," he says. "At first, I did this using a pencil, but later I began creating using a computer, which allowed me to create numerous artworks. Along with that, I also made amazing discoveries about the letters. I suddenly realized that each letter has significance—the letter 'Samekh' [ס] for example, is closed, so it’s suitable primarily when I want to create closed and circular creations. But if I want to draw a bird spreading its wings, or blooming flowers, I use letters like 'Yod' [י], 'Resh' [ר], 'Vav' [ו], etc., which are open on all sides. This also has Kabbalistic meaning.

"Furthermore, sometimes when using the same letter multiple times, you actually create an image within an image, resulting in a layered creation. You can take one small letter and make many large things from it, all depending on the size and number of times you rewrite it."

What is the most special drawing you’ve created to date?

He pauses for a moment. "It's hard to decide," he finally says, "but there is a creation of Noah's Ark and also a creation of the people of Israel wandering in the desert. I connect with both of them very much."

Is it difficult to draw that?

"It's not difficult, but challenging. Once you're limited to the shape of the letter, you can't draw just anything you wish. It also requires a lot of concentration, as precise symmetry is very necessary, and if you deviate slightly, you miss the entire depth of the picture."

How long does it take you to create such artworks?

"One small item takes about two or three hours, but there are pictures comprised of dozens of such items, which of course requires much more time."

The Tree Gave Advice

Since Leonardo's discovery of the letters, several years have passed. Meanwhile, he found jobs in a printing house, and later at the National Insurance. "I would go out to work every day, while dedicating the evening hours to my creations. Now I'm retired, so I have free time again to invest in it."

Recently, Leonardo launched an exhibition where he presented fifty selected paintings from his collection. "I plan to present more exhibitions in the future," he says, "and I also have a dream to initiate an educational project for schools, where first-grade children will learn the letters through my paintings. I think it will really endear them to reading. Of course, I will do it entirely voluntarily.

"I owe gratitude to the letters and also to the hidabrut website," he concludes, "because through the artworks and paintings I also learned many other things - about gematria and acronyms, and thus I also delved into the matter of prayer. When I recall the first time I heard about the tree in hidabrut, I say that 'the tree was the one that gave me advice.'"