When I was 13, I participated in a charity auction where we could contribute our Art. The organization would support ASHIC with whatever I could raise and there were no limits to the subject matter.
I agonized over the painting for several days and eventually created “Maybe If I Had.”
At the time, I was asked to provide a blurb and this was my contribution then: “In this painting, I tried to interlace the loss— that hole— that someone felt upon a loved one’s death. I feel there comes a point when someone starts to blame themselves for someone else’s death; their struggles. They begin to ponder over what it is that they could have done to prevent or postpone the final goodbye; the ‘what if’s’ visit their mind, and linger all too long. Many families of cancer patients feel this way, with a less than twenty percent survival rate of diagnosed children in Bangladesh alone. This piece is a tribute to those who have suffered a last goodbye; who bear to think about them long after that. It is not only the sick that agonize.”
I have been around people who have dealt with life altering loss. The sense of loss surrounds them. What I cannot articulate in words, I tried to capture in my art and perhaps this is where I first got the idea for Kids For Love. So much of our emotions can be channeled through the colors, composition and brush strokes.
I still love the idea behind this painting. As an artist I am never fully satisfied with what I produce and I was pleasantly surprised when my piece received the highest bid at the auction. I was happy to raise some money for the kids with cancer. I was happier that my art served a purpose.
I look forward to many more meaningful interactions with art, life and purpose.