Don Astaldo – Ofir Hirsh

The Boarding House – dedicated to my brothers in Miami.

by Ofir HirshDon Astaldo, Identities, My Story, Oil on Canvas 24th July 202227th June 2022No Comments

“What happened?” I asked John, who approached me smiling and shook my hand. The pastor from the neighboring crematory was screaming in Spanish in the background, while we both looked at the two police patrol cars that parked in front of the boarding house. “Did you meet the two new guys from room # 5 …

The visionary, slightly quixotic, Don Astaldo

by Ofir HirshDon Astaldo, Identities, My Story, Oil on Canvas 17th July 202216th September 2025No Comments

Astaldo, which means the valiant in Elvish, is a character invented by Tolkien. When my girlfriend, Limor, was reading ‘Silmarillion’ by Tolkien, she named herself ‘Nessa’ and gave me the name ‘Astaldo’. In 2001 I traveled to Miami and lived by myself for 3 months in a ‘boarding house’ room, in what was then considered one …