Visual Arts 5

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contain graphic or triggering material.

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Wendy Csoka
http://www.tiscorp.com/gallery/csoka/wendy
In July, 1997, artist Wendy Csoka underwent
10-1/2 hours of Neurosurgery for the removal of a benign brain tumor. The following
images were painted by Wendy before and after her surgery. She has the unique ability
to share her experience visually, which helped her through the process and resonates
with all those who see the paintings. From the terror of the day before surgery,
to the moment when she threw away the cane she needed for balance for months after,
these paintings are an inspiration for anyone faced with a life-threatening illness.
(Artist’s descriptions accompany her works.) Please also see her work at our Featured Artists pages.

	The News 48″ x 77″ This was painted the day Wendy received the news of her brain tumor. Notice the figure in the center of the painting. It is holding its head on the left side, the location of the tumor.
	Be of Good Courage 72″ x 49″ This painting was the first new painting executed three months after surgery. It represents all the flowers, prayers and love Wendy received. Musical notes are emanating from the left ear of the figure. Wendy loves music and her perception of it has been altered due to the loss of hearing in her surgery ear.
	Waiting 49″ x 63″ This image is about Wendy and her mother. The blue figure represents Wendy, the “holding” figure is her mother. Wendy needed the presence of her mother during this difficult time in her life.
	The Music Box 49″ x 66″ On the day Wendy left the hospital, her husband gave her a music box. It is a happy, colorful music box and the musical selection is “Wind Beneath My Wings.”
	The Cane 68″ x 49″ In this painting Wendy is letting go of her cane which she had been using for support since her operation. In June 1997, the last exhibit Wendy participated in before her surgery, she showed a painting titled “Ride the Horse in the Direction it’s Going.” The blue horse in this painting represents her realization of how important that saying is.
	Painting on wall: Love One Another 57″ x 49″ Wendy Csoka (left) and Naomi Katz, Esq. Installation of painting “Love One Another” on the 11th floor of NYU Medical Center, September 1, 1998.

Alexandria Heather-Vazquez
[email protected]
http://www.studio422.com
Alexandria Heather-Vazquez was first published
at the age of nine. Her work has appeared in dozens of publications, magazines, books
and galleries, both in the United States and abroad. She uses a variety of pseudonyms
to examine the responses to identical art from male and female artists. Although
this experiment has many variables, thus far she has discovered that the responses
to male pseudonyms overwhelm the female names for the same works. A multi-media artist,
her work examines the many imbalances within our world. Dedicated to the belief that
men and women must recognize each other and the earth as interdependent organisms,
her art, films, poems and fiction are the end result of an ongoing process of understanding
years of childhood sexual abuse. She lives in Manhattan with her husband, stepdaughter,
turtle, iguanas, and two very pushy cats.

“Devil’s Haircut”

“Sunday Morning
NYC”