"Prema, A Leap of Faith" 16x16 oil on board I have felt the most profound honor to be contacted by Bob Swenson, (former NFL player for the Denver Broncos), to help with an extraordinary project that he and his wife, Libby Swenson, have started titled the "Freedom 58 Project". They are asking artists to create paintings of freed slaves which will become part of an exhibit to raise awareness of the huge problem of slavery and human trafficking worldwide.
My painting of, " Prema's Leap of Faith" is the first one to be painted in the series they are going to call Dignity Portraits. This woman is a former sexually trafficked young woman on her way to healing. There is also going to be a series of head shot portraits that have not been "blanked out" that reveal the true image of the person being portrayed.
Please visit their website, which launches this week, for more information, http://freedom58project.com/
This is my painting journey of capturing the likeness of this beautiful spirit using the photograph that they furnished to me to paint from to portray this young woman's joyous leap of freedom into her future. In all of the photos for the Dignity Portraits the person's face has been blurred to protect their privacy.
I made the choice to place the butterfly mask on Prema's face and made up her nose and mouth from my imagination.
She is from India and the culture celebrates color and symbolism in their art and in their everyday lives. The butterfly is an international symbol of freedom which I felt would help convey what she is feeling and so I used that shape for the mask. The color of marigolds, orange is featured in almost every celebration and blue is the color that represents Lord Krishna, one of the most favored gods in India. I chose green for the main color of the mask as it symbollizes nature, new beginnings and God himself. The ribbons are metallic gold, a precious metal much revered in India, to symbolize her wealth and strength in spirit.
It's been a long time since I felt like I've done something with more meaning than a pretty landscape....and it feels really good! We CAN help make a difference in the world through our art.
If you are an artist and would like to donate your skills and gift this amazing organization with a painting of a freed slave, which he will furnish, for the "Freedom 58 Project" please contact Bob Swenson by email... [email protected]
Click on the image if you would like to see a larger photo.
My painting of, " Prema's Leap of Faith" is the first one to be painted in the series they are going to call Dignity Portraits. This woman is a former sexually trafficked young woman on her way to healing. There is also going to be a series of head shot portraits that have not been "blanked out" that reveal the true image of the person being portrayed.
Please visit their website, which launches this week, for more information, http://freedom58project.com/
This is my painting journey of capturing the likeness of this beautiful spirit using the photograph that they furnished to me to paint from to portray this young woman's joyous leap of freedom into her future. In all of the photos for the Dignity Portraits the person's face has been blurred to protect their privacy.
I made the choice to place the butterfly mask on Prema's face and made up her nose and mouth from my imagination.
She is from India and the culture celebrates color and symbolism in their art and in their everyday lives. The butterfly is an international symbol of freedom which I felt would help convey what she is feeling and so I used that shape for the mask. The color of marigolds, orange is featured in almost every celebration and blue is the color that represents Lord Krishna, one of the most favored gods in India. I chose green for the main color of the mask as it symbollizes nature, new beginnings and God himself. The ribbons are metallic gold, a precious metal much revered in India, to symbolize her wealth and strength in spirit.
It's been a long time since I felt like I've done something with more meaning than a pretty landscape....and it feels really good! We CAN help make a difference in the world through our art.
If you are an artist and would like to donate your skills and gift this amazing organization with a painting of a freed slave, which he will furnish, for the "Freedom 58 Project" please contact Bob Swenson by email... [email protected]
Click on the image if you would like to see a larger photo.
There is also a Pulitzer Prize winning book titled, "Half The Sky", by Nicholas D, Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn that has been praised worldwide regarding human rights violations and should be read by all of us in the "human community" on this earth of ours.
http://www.halftheskymovement.org/pages/book
http://www.halftheskymovement.org/pages/book
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