Ari wrote about his project:

“I’ve wanted a lion tattoo for a long time. At first, it was simply because my name is Ari, birth name Ariel, which in Hebrew means Lion of God. But over time, the meaning became much deeper.

I grew up in a town with very few Jewish families, and for years, my name felt like something that set me apart before I knew how to take pride in it. Decades later, through work, I spent significant time in Israel, where I found a sense of belonging and formed lifelong friendships.

After October 7th, I watched those friends endure unimaginable loss and extraordinary resilience, working through bomb sirens, finding moments of peace, and rebuilding because there is no other choice. The words in this tattoo come from an ancient piyyut by Yannai. They represent how I try to live and how the Jewish people have always lived.”

In our process together, we searched for language that could hold that fire. The lines Ari chose are

אֵשׁ כִּי כָל יוֹם מִתְחַדֶּשֶׁת אֵשׁ וַדַּאי כִּי לֹא כָבָה

“A fire that renews itself every day. A fire that never expires.”

words that carry both daily renewal and an enduring flame.

Gabriel imagined a lion’s head shaped from that promise, Ariel woven into the mane in flowing Hebrew calligraphy, parts of the form strong and defined, others left raw and textured where the ink reveals itself as text. In some places, the letters are clearly visible, a quiet nod to Am haSefer, the people of the book. In others, they move like fire through the lion’s face, alive and renewing. For Ari, this tattoo is not only about a name, it is about choosing to stand inside it and letting the fire continue to burn.