refugee father & child
own work ~ 2006-2009 ~ 120 x 200 cm ~ acrylic on canvas
although i have difficulty photographing the colours adequately (they are more brilliant, especially some of the yellow) the painting speaks for itself, i believe. but perhaps i could add a few words on the themes which drove me to this work.
&&&&&&&
images of father & child are relatively rare in art. i don't think that this is a coincidence. somehow our society seems preoccupied with -in my not so humble opinion (imnsho)- silly preconceptions about woman-man differences. we have tons of `madonna-with-child'-like imagery, reflecting the cliché that children are raised by the loving care of the mother, much more than by the loving care of the father.
imnsho, we desperately need to change many of these man-woman clichés which are so dominant. a loving father's and mother's presence to me both seem essential in any upbringing - even though many of us have to do without one, the other or both.
the discrimination between the sexes is traditionally seen as holding women back from good job perspectives, economic independence, sexual independence,... but how often do we stop to consider the role patterns that hold men back from becoming loving fathers? from becoming actively involved in the raising of the children, from being a family- and community-involved person, instead of a career-, money-, power-driven one?
&&&&&&&
anyway, i think a loving, present father can be a rock of security in a child's world. a safe haven, a protector, a comforting presence.
in the painting, i was also driven by the theme of war & violence, which is so predominant in the world. we are all connected. anyone's war is our war, and our concern i believe. why do we let ourselves be driven by racism, fear, greed, violence, power?
in the refugee father, i have tried to paint this. and yet his child sleeps in his arms, feeling safe, protected, knowing the father is there. but where are the mother, and the other children?
so perhaps i should add that the father understands we cannot even protect our loved ones from the violence in this world.
