When Hope Rises
6′ x 6′
Oil on cancas
2002

Anthrax
 34″ x 54″
Oil and cut newspapers on canvas
2002

Memorial
63″ x 98″
Oil, paper and metal on canvas
2002

Before September 11th, I painted sunflowers, daffodils, and portraits of my friends and family. After September 11th, flowers turned into fires, figures became fatalities, and I became a politically-inspired painter. Shown here are four paintings created shortly after September 11, 2001.

At that time, I had a home studio and painted with oils. I also loved adding mixed media to these works. Knowing that one cannot safely paste newspapers and such over oil, I planned out each of these paintings carefully. First, I collected newspapers, posters and other paper products, glued them to the canvas, and then waited for the glue to dry. Next came the oil paints, and the mica powders.

For Memorial, newspapers were placed first, then the paint. For the final layer, I added cut metal and flags. Before I stretched the canvas, I also spent days researching who died on Flight 77, the reporters in Iraq who died shortly after covering the story, and our first military losses.