About The 8 Project
Helping Soldiers and Trauma Survivors Rebuild Life After Trauma
The 8 Project is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping IDF soldiers and trauma survivors rebuild their lives after trauma.
At the heart of our work is The Residency — an intensive rehabilitation program that provides structure, therapeutic support, mentorship, community, and creative practice for individuals coping with PTSD and trauma-related challenges.
We believe recovery is not only about managing symptoms. It is about rebuilding purpose, confidence, connection, and identity.
The Rehabilitation Residency Program:
The Foundation of Everything We Do.
Designed to support long-term recovery, The Residency provides participants with the tools, resources, and support systems needed to rebuild their lives beyond trauma.
Through individualized care, professional guidance, community, and creative engagement, participants develop the stability, confidence, and direction necessary to move forward.
It’s about building what comes next.
BEYOND THE RESIDENCY
The 8 Project also operates a public gallery, educational workshops, exhibitions, and community programs that help raise awareness, foster connection, and create opportunities for meaningful engagement with our mission.
These initiatives allow the public to experience the transformative power of art while building a broader community of support around those navigating recovery from trauma.
Many of the artists, stories, and projects featured through The 8 Project are directly connected to the values and work of the Residency.
SUPPORT THE MISSION
The Residency is made possible through the generosity of donors, partners, foundations, community supporters, and mission-driven programming.
Every donation, partnership, workshop, event, exhibition, and artwork purchased helps support the Residency and expand access to recovery for those who need it most.
As the need continues to grow, so does our commitment to providing meaningful pathways toward long-term recovery.
The average cost of supporting one resident through the program is $15,000
TOMER PERETZ
Tomer Peretz is an award-winning Israeli-American conceptual artist, born in Jerusalem and based in Los Angeles. His style is defined by figurative storytelling and realism, illuminated by the belief that beauty often reveals itself through darkness, in the cracks, the erasures, and the fragments that make us human. Layered paint, texture, and deliberate distortion uncover what lies beneath the surface, inviting viewers into the tension between vulnerability and strength.
A former combat soldier and officer in a special forces unit, Tomer has long relied on art as a grounding force and a way to reconnect with meaning and purpose. After relocating to Los Angeles, he built a successful international career, exhibiting across the U.S., Europe, and Israel.
In October 2023, while visiting Israel, Tomer volunteered in the aftermath of the Hamas attacks, assisting in the recovery and dignified handling of more than 200 bodies and body parts. This life-altering experience reshaped his artistic mission and led him to found The 8 Project, a nonprofit that supports survivors in rebuilding their lives through creativity, community, and shared resilience.
In 2025, Tomer was named the inaugural Artist-in-Residence at the Museum of Tolerance, where he premiered Art Will S8T You Free, a groundbreaking exhibition co-created with more than 850 survivors, standing as a powerful act of remembrance, unity, and hope.
Through his art and his work at The 8 Project, Tomer continues to build pathways from suffering to strength, using creativity to restore dignity, inspire connection, and remind the world that hope is an act of courage.
