Erik from Amsterdam reached out to us with a story shaped by layers of identity, memory, and experience. He wanted to reclaim the pink triangle. For him, it carries the weight of history, marking the persecution of gay men during the Holocaust and the absence of their recognition in broader acts of remembrance. It is not only a historical symbol but something deeply personal, tied to his own coming of age and the process of understanding himself.

At the same time, Erik described his connection to Hebrew, to reading, and to study. He first encountered Hebrew seriously in his thirties, beginning with Psalm 1, and that experience led him to study the language and religion more deeply. He spoke about the joy he feels in reading Hebrew, and the way it continues to open meaning for him.

His years in Israel in the early 1980s also played a central role in his story. He described that period as a time in which he experienced a different kind of openness, one that allowed him to embrace aspects of himself more fully. That experience remained with him and shaped the way he understands freedom, faith, and responsibility. As a Christian theologian, he now describes himself as a Brit Noach, a way of living that connects him to Jewish thought while remaining grounded in his own path.

In the process, another layer entered the conversation through the idea of the pomegranate as a symbolic reference. In Jewish tradition, it carries associations of abundance, richness, and the multiplicity of life. This added a new dimension to the piece, placing the act of reclaiming within a broader movement toward life and fullness.

Gabriel’s approach was to bring these elements into a single piece. The triangle becomes a structured form, while the composition opens outward, allowing the symbol to move beyond its original meaning and hold something more expansive.

For Erik, the piece reflects a process of reclaiming and reinterpretation. It brings together his personal history, his engagement with Hebrew and Jewish tradition, and his understanding of identity as something lived and evolving. The result is a form that holds memory and transformation at the same time.