What Does AVDA Have in Common With Sunflowers?
Domestic Violence
This past week, I received a call requesting a painting to be submitted into the 15th Annual “Heart of A Woman Luncheon’s”, Silent Auction. Domestic Violence is a pattern of behavior used by one person in an intimate relationship to gain and maintain power and control over their partner. The individual who made this request was personally involved in domestic violence. This violence is experienced by about 1 in 4 women, 43 million women experience psychological aggression. I was personally involved in this experience and witnessed the helplessness of the woman and her child, as the husband was proud of his power. The moments of fright to wonder if the woman will make it till the morning, counting the hours in the darkest of nights. We were one of the lucky families who reached out to the courts and to ADVA in order to keep everyone safe. This request touches the chords in my heart.
Setting up the still life with the undercoating and markup
The process of block in.
What to do?
The previous weekend, I purchased sunflowers from a store donating all proceeds in the assistance to the people of Ukraine. It was an easy choice to turn them around in an oil painting to be placed in the ADVA silent auction.
The only way to paint something like this is to play music loudly, do a little dance, spin a few times and proceed to paint. The joy comes from the giving back to an organization that played an important role. I can’t tell you how this was done, only that time passed and the process went into autopilot and there you have the finished piece.
“Your mind expands when you give, your heart expands when you share, and your soul expands when you are charitable.”
Matshona Dhliwayo
The Painting
The Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse luncheon will be held on April 12, 2022 at the Royal Palm Yacht Club in Boca Raton, Fl. It is out of character for me to paint a larger canvas. At the end of the day, all good comes out of having this opportunity to give back!
If you experience or know someone who is a Victim, I would recommend you check out this website, https://avdaonline.org
“Sunflowers in a Vase” 22”x 28”
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