Category: Experimental Traditional Art Post Type: Mixed Media Traditional Art
Mixed Media: Maximum | This is the second in my Fractured series that addresses the disease of dementia and Alzheimer disease. I have two family members and two friends who suffer from this progressively debilitating disease. I wanted express the sadness and disbelief sufferers have in the early stages when they are realizing that their memory is going and the world becomes a more confusing and disorienting place since they cannot remember things like their phone numbers, birthday, or addresses and often the names of family members. I sketched this piece out on a canvas board. I then mod podged some torn newspaper as the hair and some of the forgotten memories. I wanted the blue body to represent the sadness and despair the sufferers feel. The many shades and textures of the hair represent their ultimate forgetfulness regarding personal hygiene. I deliberately left the right side of the head broken to represent how the memories fall between the cracks or are incomplete. I thought this would be a good entry for the human form contest even though it is an abstract representation. I wanted a dark background to represent the darkness of their world but I did not want to use black so I created an aubergine background by mixing burnt umber and violet to create the darkness I desired. I am happy with the outcome of this piece but I am eager to hear your reactions.

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Fractured Memories by Linda Wetzel