This is February.
In a few days from now thousands of people will flock to New York for
Toy Fair 2015. These are the
people who spend their year focused on the wants and needs of children. There will be the store buyers who will
look for new the toys that will make a child squeal with glee. The manufacturers and the designers
will listen closely to the buyers and think of the ways they will redesign in
2016. Marketers will spend
countless hours focused on informing Mommy bloggers about all the wonderful
items that will educate and inspire the future generation. In the bright and whirling cacophony of
commerce, design and creation everyone will focus on the child.
While all of this transpires, I will take off my artist
smock and for day go back to Barstons Child’s Play, the store I have worked in
for over 16 years. I will be a
clerk again. I will focus on
children and joy. I will help
parents make the best choices for their little ones. I will fly away from the sickness and sorrow that informs so
much of my work, and I will be the one who helps a child.
Then March will come.
Thousands of people will flock to Austin, Texas for SXSW2015 (South by
Southwest). These are the
people that spend their year focused on film, music and cutting edge
technology. There will be the
storeowners looking for an edgy sound or the newest digital design. There will be the venture capitalists
and angel investors looking for the hot new medical device or mobile tech concept. There will be marketers and
entertainment bloggers looking for the hottest new act. In this pulsing musical clamor of the
arts and tech combined, very few people will focus on the child.
Within the sprawling venue there are three tracks: Film,
Music and Interactive. Within the
Interactive track is an expo focused on health and innovation. Within the expo there is a microcosm
called Impact Pediatric: HealthPitch Competition.
Here they will focus on the child and for them I created the
painting “Flying”
I took their logo, a spiraling series of foreshortened dots
and turned them into shields.
Behind the shields pediatric patients are flying like superheroes.
In the far distance three children fly with symbols of a
teardrop for mental anguish, a question for innovation and gears for power of
industry.
Closer in a child flies with an exclamation point shield
representing patient safety, another child has the symbol of a die for
gamification and closer yet a child flies with the symbol of a ribbon that represents all disease.
Along the top of the spiral a girl holds a shield with the
medical cross representing institutional medicine. To her right a toddler boy holds a shield emblazoned with
the universal symbol for the infant and it represents prematurity. To his right a girl proudly bears a
shield with a double helix for the potential of applied genomics.
At the bottom of the spiral and closet to the viewer are the
last two children. A boy holds a
shield with the pound symbol, the hashtag, representing all things social
media. To his left a determined girl flies toward the viewer and upon her
shield is the wifi symbol representing the power of interactive tech to spread
a culture of health.
On Monday March 16, the finalists will present their
interactive concepts that could help pediatric populations. I hope this
painting will inspire them. I am
glad that Brian Lang from Impact Pediatric asked for my help on this project. I
am so very happy to return to my first passion and once again help a child.
I love this, and it's meaning. Beautiful work. So proud to know such an amazing artist.
ReplyDeleteShine on Always!
Thank you Shannon! It is great to shine with you!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, Regina...in so many ways
ReplyDeleteThank you Pam! It was so good to spend time with you in Providence!
DeleteRegina - this is amazing and powerful. Thank you so much for lending your talent and creativity to our cause. I am one of the hospital representatives participating in this event - I had goose bumps as I read through each shield description!
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading about the piece. I am glad it touched you. Art has great power to communicate at a very deep level.
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