Artist Name: Deborah Ellingwood

Location: Maine

Title of Artwork: Untitled at this time

Dimensions of Artwork: 22×30

Medium: Watercolor

Website: http://www.dellingwood.com

Describe this Piece: I used a black and white photo of my oldest daughter for the face and then just let my mind go as far as the placement of the wings as well as the background. Right now I am just playing with the paints. I used a sheet of Arches 300 lb cold pressed paper and Winsor & Newton watercolor paints

Artist: Gordon Stead

Location: Leeds, Engand

Title: Footprints in the Snow

Medium: Oils

Dimensions: 36 “x30 ”

Support: Stretched Canvas

Comments from the Artist: Oil on stretched canvas,quite easy to do as i only used 3 colours ,saves money too…

Artist: Susan Satterfield

Location: Central Florida in travel trailer roving about the country…

Title: Peachy Iris

Medium: Watercolor

Dimensions: 7×10

Support: Fabriano Artistco Extra-White 140lb

Comments from the Artist: I have been painting with watercolors about 2 years. It never ceases to amaze me how much I learn from every work of art I do.

Artist: Jaime Moxey

Location: Argentina

Title: Gardeners

Medium: Acrylics

Dimensions: 100 x 130 cm

Artist: Bernie Rosage Jr.

Title: “A Tribute to Gold Star Moms”

Medium: Oil

Dimensions: 10×8

Support: Linen

“A Tribute to Gold Star Moms”

For me, as an artist, painting is a struggle. Struggle in the sense that I force myself to adhere to an almost daily routine of painting. Too many times life gets in the way and painting has to take a back seat… but sometimes life gets in the way and inspiration comes. When this happens it’s as if the painting takes on a life of its own. It’s as if divine intervention takes over… this painting has such a story.

“A Tribute to Gold Star Moms” by Bernie Rosage Jr.
En Plein Aire, April 2008.

The painting started from a typical monthly “Paint Out” with a group of plein air artists that gather once a month to paint scenes form our county. We call ourselves OOPS… Onslow Outdoor Painters Society. We live in a military conscious area… home of Camp Lejeune Marine Corps base. Our April “Paint Out” was at the Beirut Memorial… a beautiful and significant spot.

The OOPS artists were scattered throughout the site painting from various vantage points… I opted for a close up of the statue’s boots. Since I was positioned at the focal point of the memorial I had the opportunity to meet many nice people. Two of those people opened my eyes and broke my heart.

Let me explain…

Two ladies approached me, commented on my painting and one asked for a business card… as we talked she told me… “my son is buried over there”… motioning to the Veterans Cemetery adjacent to the memorial. I was taken back… she was my age and her son was close in age to my three oldest children. I’m used to burials of WWII, Korean, and Vietnam veterans over there… older veterans who lived full lives… not someone my children’s age. She (wish I could remember her name) mentioned her son was killed in 2004 and that her friend’s son was killed less than a year ago. My eyes were opened to how real this war is and my heart ached for these two ladies.

I noticed one lady wearing a “Gold Star” necklace knowing well what it represented since my wife’s grandmother was a Gold Star mom… losing her oldest son in Korea in 1950. When I got home… I added the necklace to my painting as a tribute to these two anonymous ladies, their impact on me, and Gold Star moms everywhere. I have four children of my own… my mind can’t even imagine what Gold Star moms and families go through… please accept my humble tribute to you.