Colorado local Topher Straus is called to places. It’s not until after his arrival, however, when he realizes why he was drawn someplace to capture moments in human history.

Most recently, on October 6, 2023, the Golden, Colorado-based imaginationalist, whose art is scattered all over Colorado, answered a silent summon. He began working on a painting of Jerusalem for the Jewish National Fund. After 10 minutes he put his paintbrush down, searched for his passport and booked a flight bound for Tel Aviv. He woke up in Israel’s largest city on October 7, 2023, and went to submerge himself in nature in the Mediterranean Sea. As a Jewish painter, he says this arrival to Israel was truly special and exhilarating. But moments later, he heard sirens blasting and watched missiles dart through the sky from Gaza.

“I set out to Israel to make a painting,” Straus says. “It was not the experience I was looking for, but it was the experience I was intended to have.”

Straus lived multiple lives before embracing he was destined to be a painter. He was an athlete who went to college to be an actor. During his freshman year at Syracuse University, he was required to enroll in an art class and discovered a new passion.

“It was a gift for me to get a blank canvas,” he shares.

Ever since, Straus has been making sense of the world one brush stroke at a time. Even when he was working in the media industry in California, Utah and New Zealand, Straus used compositions to grasp the world around him.

“[For years] I used my art secretly to express thoughts and ideas about gentrification and 9/11,” he explains. “There were thoughts I did not know how to express besides through negative space — a form of private expression to deal with difficult topics.”

CAUGHT IN THE “FOG OF WAR”

On that frightful and gruesome day in early October, Straus did not know about the abduction of innocent civilians and the intensive airstrikes that captured the world’s attention. It was the initial day of his first visit to Israel, and it took him no time to realize this was not a normal day in Tel Aviv. He says he was overwhelmingly in danger, and no one knew the brevity of what was going on.

Amid the escalating danger, Straus sought refuge in a pharmacy. He was advised by Israelis to find a way out of the country. There was no way to get food because everything was closed because of Shabbat. It took a day for him to grasp the urgency of the situation — he could not see through the fog of war, as he put it.

For five consecutive days, he visited the airport but each flight faced cancellation. A chance encounter at a coffee shop led him on a flight on the Israeli airline, El Al. The airport was deserted this time; everyone had given up. Onboard, the pilot announced they would fly dark because they were a target. Upon reaching altitude, Straus says there was a collective sigh of relief.

ART THROUGH NEW EYES

Straus landed safely in Milan, Italy and later returned home to Golden, Colorado. He moved from a tumultuous journey to a realm where faith and the rhythm of life seamlessly intertwined. Straus’s steadfast dedication to his faith becomes apparent as he perceives Judaism, art and nature as essential components, much like water is a vital part of life’s continuous flow.

Art + photos by Topher Straus

“[Judaism, art and nature is] our source of water, refreshing ourselves,” the imaginationalist invites. “It is cleansing, it
has rhythm and clarity. When you submit yourself to the water, and the flow, it will take you to where you need to go.”

After what he experienced at the dawn of the war, Straus is committed to raising money for causes he believes in and telling stories he is compelled to share. Through art, he is financially supporting the Jewish National Fund and Maui Strong. He is also collaborating with clients to allocate a portion of the profits to agencies and causes selected by the clients.

“I’d rather live a colorful life of experiences both good and bad than not live,” Straus says.

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Discover the narratives and the significant moments Straus captures in human history throughout at topherstraus.com. Here, you will find the completed Jerusalem piece that initially brought him to Israel. Bliss (left) depicts Beaver Creek, Colorado with colors he has never used before. He notes this transformation, attributing it to the experiences he had in Israel.

Originally published in Summer + Fall 2024 issue of Well.