I also just took part in an amazing art and therapy collaboration entitled
The Perception Project which paired me with a trauma survivor.
I created the artwork and wrote the thoughts below for the project.
Gregg Chadwick
A Resilient Light
24"x18" oil on linen 2018
A Resilient Light (The Perception Project)
Chelsea’s life story inspired me to paint A Resilient Light.
With her therapist present, we engaged in a rich discussion that outlined
the challenges she has overcome and the path she has laid out for her journey.
As Chelsea spoke, I pictured a long stairway with one end in the past
and the summit in the future. In my mind, I saw Chelsea at different stages
along this stairway. Maybe hesitant steps at first.
Perhaps a tumble here or there.
But Chelsea is a survivor and she keeps climbing.
A warm, welcoming light illuminates this path forward
and seems to urge Chelsea on.
Later, in my studio I began to put layers of paint down.
The stairway came first and originally reached towards the top of
the linen canvas. A small figure vanishing into a fog of light looked fine
but did not carry the emotional weight of our conversation.
Instead, I flipped the vantage point so that we were in the future looking back
towards the past. In my mind, Chelsea’s resilient voice resonated,
which helped me create a strong, brave character moving across
the surface of the painting. This female figure appears in multiple stages
of the climb. Movement and energy abound.
She follows a resilient path. In the distance, a figure in red
watches over her and supports her. A parent figure perhaps or a therapist.
I painted A Resilient Light in the hope that it will inspire Chelsea
and others as they courageously climb the stairs of life.
