It's that time of the year when people make New Years' resolutions. These often involve bettering themselves or their community in some way. Some artists don't wait for the New Year to make these decisions, instead taking whatever opportunities they have to improve a cause near and dear to their hearts. In this issue, we will look at two artists, who are pretty well known for their philanthropy.
In 2006, his 16-year-old daughter, Paige, sadly passed away from brain cancer. It has been reported that when she was sick, her father's paintings would always make her laugh and keep her entertained during her endless treatments. After her death, Godard became determined that his art, like her death, had to mean something more.
During Paige Godard's cancer journey, she was cared for by St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. This is where his philanthropy really took off, and his Hearts of Hope paintings began. All proceeds from the paintings go to St. Jude's.
Over the years, the design has changed, and we will show you a few different versions
Potentially, one of his first versions of Hearts of Hope, is a simple but beautiful blue background, with a white heart and wings.
By 2016, he added more colour to the painting and made something that is more his style, with a black background and pops of colour.
By 2017, Godard also had a bigger version that added a second heart and changed the blue and green colours to red and yellow.
Brand new for 2022 and debuting a few weeks ago in an art auction I was lucky enough to attend, he totally transformed his Hearts of Hope into something new called Wings of Hope. This design was based on the feedback of many of his fans asking for colours to be added to symbolize a cancer that took one of their loved ones' lives or who beat their battle. In it, he made the choice to use all the colours he could, and the hummingbirds are given an almost 3-D appearance.
Godard doesn't just sell one of these images and consider his work done, but he creates a unique work as part of a series for anyone who would like one of these paintings.
These aren't the only four he has created, but they are probably some of his most popular. His philanthropy doesn't stop there, though. He is involved in many other causes, for example, Dogs to Dog Tags, which is a charity that partners veterans with support dogs and Wounded Warriors.
When people ask Godard what he does for a living, he doesn't say he is an artist. He says he is a philanthropist.
Speaking of his philanthropic work, especially his Hearts of Hope series Godard says, "The funds I help raise save lives and at the end of the day, it's the most important thing I do. All the money in the world can not bring [Paige] back, but the funds I help raise for a cure will help save another child."
Next up, I would like to talk about the phenomenal artist known as Peter Max.
In 1976, Peter Max began painting the Statue of Liberty. It wasn't long after that, in the 1980s, that Lady Liberty was no longer resembling the goddess that she should. Instead, she was cracked, crumbling and in need of restoration. In 1981, Nancy Reagan invited Max to paint six portraits of the Statue of Liberty at the White House for that upcoming July 4th. At this time, he also learned of the devastating conditions of the Statue. The fact was, the structure was failing, and they didn't know how long it would remain standing. The White House couldn't fund the project to restore Lady Liberty to her glory, and the project would need to be funded privately. Max remained deeply invested in restoring the statue, working with investors and donators to raise more than $350 million dollars in donations. After four years of work, the renovated statue finally reopened to the public in 1986.
His patriotic work, despite not having been born in America, didn't end there.
Everyone remembers the tragic events that occurred on September 11, 2001. Though Peter Max wasn't born in the United States, as a "True New Yorker" like he considered himself to be, he was as devastated as everyone else by the attack. He wanted to do whatever he could to support the victims and raise money for them. That is where his "9/11 Suite" came in. Proceeds from this series were put into a fund to help the families of the people who tragically lost their lives that day. This was a series of six paintings, where many copies were made of these as Mixed Media images.
This suite includes Peace on Earth, which is said to symbolize not only Max's patriotism but his desire for world peace.
God Bless America - With Five Liberties, shows Max's skill with color.
God Bless America II, brings together three of his popular images, the American Flag, the full Statue of Liberty, and the Statue of Liberty's head.
Liberty and Justice for All receives a very colourful rendition of the different Liberty Heads. It is suggested that this piece may symbolize the fact that everyone deserves liberty and justice, no matter their race or background.
Land of the Free, Home of the Brave, is the only one very different from the rest of this group. This one is suggested that it serves as a memorial for those we lost on that tragic day.
The last image of this set, United We Stand, is said to capture the feeling of camaraderie the country felt in the days following the tragic events.
Peter Max didn't just stop there. He stopped painting for commission for the next two years. Instead, he requested photographs of the 356 first responders who lost their lives responding to the Twin Towers and Pentagon and spent those years painstakingly painting each one to be presented to the responder's family. Each work was wrapped in an American Flag when presented to the family. When it came to creating these portraits, Peter Max stated, "As I painted them, it was as though their gazes were looking directly at me...They could have been my friends or my relatives and were all my fellow Americans. And all heroes."
While it might be impossible for the average person to do something to that scale, why not try making a resolution to give back to people where you can? You might just be surprised about how much you can accomplish.
Well, that's it for this issue, see you all in the next!