Illustrator Zeev Engelmayer, popularly known as “Shoshke,” began drawing “Daily Postcards” in the weeks after the October 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught. The illustrations posted on his Instagram account embodied the horror, fear and sorrow of the war in Gaza, as well as portraits of the hostages abducted in the carnage, 47 of whom have not yet been released.
His postcards became world-renowned, hung in public and private displays, and were often turned into placards and posters held by the artist and thousands of others at rallies and protests.
Now his work has been made into banners, billboards and signage for the western Negev, the region that bore the brunt of the invasion that saw some 1,200 people slaughtered and 251 abducted to the Strip.
But for the first time in 24 months, the messaging is slightly more optimistic, full of compassion and mercy, said Engelmayer, speaking hours before a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was announced.
“It makes me feel very emotional to know that the illustrations are there, in the very place in the western Negev, the places where it all happened,” he said.
Get The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the terms
They’re new artworks created by the Tel Aviv artist. Some feature the anticipated hugs between soon-to-be-released hostages and their loved ones, such as Matan Zangauker and his mother, Einav, or hostage Eitan Horn and his brother, former hostage Iair Horn. Others envision hugs between or with loved ones who are no longer living.
One of Zeev Engelmayer’s latest postcards, this one from October 9, 2025, as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was being signed. The words, in Hebrew, read, ‘Thank you President Trump!’ (Courtesy)
There are doves as well, said Engelmayer, befitting of the hope for the war’s end and, possibly, maybe, peace.
The Eshkol regional communities decided to switch from raising awareness via photos of the remaining hostages to using Engelmayer’s illustrations, said the artist, as residents felt that people weren’t really paying attention to the photos any longer.
“They were too accustomed to the pictures,” said Engelmayer, “so they’ve switched to this format, and to some videos as well.”
Artist Zeev Engelmayer’s ‘hug’ series, of former hostage Iair Horn and his brother, Eitan Horn, of former hostage Arbel Yehoud with her partner, hostage Ariel Cunio (Courtesy)
Engelmayer spoke of a recent conversation with a mother whose son was killed, and who told him that when she looks at the illustration of her son, she cries, knowing he was killed, but gaining something from the illustration as well.
“I think there’s an intention in the drawing because I’ve sat for a few hours and worked on it, and it’s a different kind of intention than a photo,” he said.
The outdoor exhibit of Engelmayer’s work was initiated by Group 19, a women’s organization from the city of Sderot, who turned to Engelmayer with a budget and a plan to mark the second anniversary of October 7.
“People keep writing me and telling me how much they like it,” said Engelmayer. “It makes me feel very emotional.”
Engelmayer’s project, which grew out of his own sense of trauma and fear, has continued to resonate for viewers around the world.
Zeev Engelmayer’s Daily Postcard exhibited in Philadelphia, PA in 2024 (Courtesy)
It’s been exhibited worldwide, including at England’s Oxford University, the windows of the Museum of the City of New York, in Germany, Italy, Denmark, Australia and Hong Kong. An exhibit is being planned for Moscow, Russia and Toulouse, France, in the coming months.
It has continued to be displayed even during the growing cultural boycott of Israel, as Israeli artists have been disinvited to events or targeted by pro-Palestinian protestors.
Engelmayer said it has sometimes surprised him that his illustrations have been able to remain in certain locations, such as the yard of the Oxford library, with pro-Palestinian rallies held nearby regularly.
“They’re there to remind people that the hostages were still in Gaza, and to identify with them when it was harder to connect with Israel,” he said.
Elona Dekel, left, from Sderot’s Group 19, and Zeev Engelmayer, at one of his newer images, which reads, ‘We’ll remember them all 730.10.23,’ hung on October 7, 2025, marking 730 days since October 7, 2023 (Courtesy)
It’s a project that still involves Engelmayer every day.
“I get up in the morning, like I did today, speaking to a mother of two children who were killed on October 7,” he said. “You don’t forget that kind of conversation, you hold it all day.”
But as he has since the start, Engelmayer still appreciates the messages and the feedback, as well as the photos sent to him by followers who see his illustrations during their travels.
There are even people who have dreamed about the postcards’ imagery, such as Ayelet Levy, the mother of released hostage Naama Levy, who dreamed of Engelmayer’s image of Levy hugging her daughter before she was released home in January.
Zeev Engelmayer’s illustration of Ayelet Levy hugging her daughter, Naama Levy, ahead of her January 2025 release from Hamas captivity (Courtesy)
“She told me she dreamed that she hugged Naama the way I drew it,” said Engelmayer. “That has meaning for me.”
Engelmayer has projects he plans on completing once the war is completely over and the hostages are home, but for now, he’s prepared to stick with his Daily Postcards.
“I can’t describe how many good people I meet. There’s so much pessimism, but I meet the good side,” he said. “There are good people who believe in reconciliation; revenge isn’t what they want.”
