The momentous events of the last three months, the invasion of Ukraine, the energy crisis, the scandals in Parliament, the aftermath of Brexit, the economic effects of some of these events and other more personal matters have had a profound significance for me, my friends and family as we reach the end of April.
Firstly the outrageous and senseless war being conducted from the Kremlin which is now now raging is destroying the lives of so many ordinary, peaceful people and creating so much suffering, inhumanity and fear throughout the world. Millions of refugees have fled to neighbouring countries, yet the resistance, resilience and bravery of the Ukrainian leaders is immense and two individuals in particular have been recognised in the art world by other artists and my own observations of the media coverage of this tragedy .
This man has become the inspirational leader of Ukraine and prior to the war tried to unify the disparate elements and parts of the country. As the newly elected leader he has gained widespread international admiration as the symbol of resistance by setting a wonderful example to all his people. A former actor, comedian and well-educated statesman with a law degree his actions and concern for his people have transformed him into one of the most familiar faces on uncensored social media and national television today.
Amelia Anisovych was originally filmed in a bomb shelter in Kyiv singing “Let it Go” from “Frozen” at the beginning of the war and then escaped to Poland as a refugee. She has charmed so many people with her confidence, winning smile, shyness, spontaneity and innocence when she sang the Ukrainian National Anthem and other songs to much larger audiences in the safety of Poland where she is now staying with her mum, grandma and brother.
Whilst the turmoil and tragedy from the war has dominated all the media channels here in the UK, we have celebrated Easter, and been reminded of this Christian festival in art and music.
A few weeks ago I decided to try and raise some more money for the various charities I support by having a few affordable limited edition prints made from original paintings that have been sold or still remain in my possession. So far 10 prints have been reproduced and here are three of them:-
Thanks to my wife, Christine we have redecorated one of our bedrooms and this work is now finished so, hopefully there will be time to do some more painting. Retirement has brought much enjoyment and pleasure allowing me to reflect on the things in life that really do matter and I sincerely hope and pray that in the near future, by some miracle, the hatred and violence will cease and that sanity will prevail.