What am I doing? Ripping up a painting like that??
I HAD TO!
It all fit together in my head I had to see it through…
First I spray painted two scraps of canvas. Then I attached them together.
Then I sketched all different scenes of Jewish People in anguish, crying, hugging, mourning and suffering. After all it’s in our blood. We all feel it one way or another. I could cry just thinking about it. All of our collective suffering through the years.
With that being said, we survive and more then that, we THRIVE. And so I added that on too. I added a chuppah in there, and shabbos, and tzitus and bris milah with so much dance and song.
It’s everything that colors up out beautiful nation. All that depth we carry and bring forth, it’s all there - The darkness with the light.
Then, I added all different paint strokes with all the colors, for that exact reason. To add the lightness and reflect on all of our colors.
I then ripped the entire thing up. Into smaller scraps. It’s saturated with our pain, suffering and lives. It’s what we pray for every single day.
Then I attached it onto the larger canvas, forming them into bricks of the kotel.
That’s what I see at the kotel. Tears. Prayer. Deep yearning and prayer. So much anguish. Crying, begging, and thanking. It’s saturated with our pleas.
I put that all on, one. by. one.
The canvas was then removed and stretched.
I then poured resin on top of the entire painting. I wanted to keep the painting light, with all of our colors.
To me this is a depiction of how I like to live my life. It’s not just pain, but what will you DO with the pain? How will you show up?
In all of my colors. Always.
