The Story of Harry


One night, very late in my studio, I felt compelled to create one last piece before retiring to bed. I almost felt like I was on autopilot, as if someone else were doing the work through me. I altered a vintage book cover with oil pastels and vintage papers and adhered an image of a little boy with purple hair and a red clown nose. With pencil I quickly scribbled some text along the outer edges of the piece -- words flowing rapidly, automatically from the tip -- I barely even knew what I was writing. And then I stopped to read it -- "He did not seem to fit in wherever he went. It used to make him cry, but somehow he came to a place of peace -- where he could celebrate this and enjoy the solitude that was his." The title of the work -- "He Enjoyed Being Different."

I put the piece up for sale on my site -- it sat there, waiting. About a month later I checked my email early one morning -- an email from PayPal, saying it had been purchased. Another email from a woman in the U.K. saying she had bought it for a friend whose son was recently diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome -- she knew that this piece was meant for them.

Several weeks later I received a very touching email from the woman who purchased the piece. She wrote,"I wanted to let you know that this arrived safely on Monday -- I sent it on to my friend, who was also moved to tears. She showed it to Harry, and read him the words, and he understood completely. Apparently, he asked her several times that day if he could look at it again. Thank you again from the bottom of my heart, it's not often one has an opportunity to visually express the things we feel for our friends, and you have let me do that in a very special way. Your work comes from a unique place, and this experience will stay with me for a very long time."

I was moved to tears by this email and I realized the power and privilege I had been given to make a difference through my art. This was a turning point for me -- a new way to look at my artmaking -- and each time a piece flows from my heart, mind and hands, out into the Universe -- I feel a sense of peace, knowing that I have made a difference somewhere in the world.