Sunday, September 4, 2011

Mother and Child - SOLD

Acrylic on 9x12 canvas sheet
Available through DPW auction 
(proceeds to help Children of Africa)

This is my submission for the DPW - Help the Children of Africa challenge. I wanted to paint something specific for this challenge - something that represented Africa to me. I thought of doing a landscape of the continent, maybe utilizing Google maps. But I wanted something more personal and a bit more "alive." I thought of the animals of the Africa; the giraffe & elephant. A quick review of the images in the Wet Canvas library, I came upon a herd of elephants from Africa. And I connected with the adult & child in the photo. I zoomed in to the two of them and made them the focus of my painting. This painting is up for auction with all money being donated to Childfund International Horn of Africa relief fund.

I currently sponsor a child in Africa through Childfund International who lives in Kenya. Gedison Mutethia is a small, young boy who I started to sponsor a few years ago. For a monthly price, both he & his family are given food, medical, dental & schooling. It is not just a handout to these people - they are actually taught skills to help with survival, and the child gets an education that in turn, may one day help his community. In return I get letters and gratitude - and a form of unconditional love from a small family of people who live on the other side of the world from me. Gedison is the third child from Africa that I have sponsored - the prior 2 children are no longer in the program, their family having moved from the area. In addition to the monthly donation, I also send money for the child's birthday and also at Christmas. In every instance, I receive a letter of thanks from the family, and they explain exactly what was bought with the money. The entire family unit benefits from the organization. I heartily recommend sponsoring if you can, it's a wonderful way to give it back (pay it forward). Besides Gedison, I also sponsor a girl, Maria in Brazil and a young girl, Lei, in Vietnam. These 3 children help to define who I am. I have sponsored a child through this organization for over 25 years, and I do recommend them.


4 comments:

padmaja said...

It is a fabulous piece, very appropriate for the cause..yes, sponsoring does reap benefits in the long run.. just yesterday, the girl whom I was sponsoring came to tell me that she got a good job in a leading company.. the feeling was awesome!

jill polsby said...

And I learn more about my painting friend every day. What a wonderful way to give back. It is a wonderful painting and even more special because of the reason you painted it. I am thankful that there are such generous people as you out there, trying to improve our world a small piece at a time.

Autumn Leaves said...

Your painting is beautiful but your heart moreso. The elephants are truly awesome and I am reminded of the mother/child bond in Dumbo.

Jean Nelson Paintings and Photography said...

This is such a sweet painting - I love the way the baby is nuzzling his mom. The Portland zoo recently had a baby elephant and your painting reminds me of him. Nice work.

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