Buonfresco

The Veterans Educational Historic Monument  was the brainchild of Gordon Gerling, and the dream of the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery Memorial Association. In 2009, I was commissioned to take on a project of historic dimension–capturing the stories, and history of each branch of the U.S. military on five 8 X 10 foot oil paintings. To say this project has impacted my life would be to vastly underestimate it. There is a website devoted completely to its origins, and contains beginning to end images of the models,  the finished paintings, along with myriad media stories, videos, interviews and documentaries. I have included sketches, drawings and paintings from the project on this website, each clearly indicated by the title. This, I believe, helps you gather an idea of the vast role this project has played in my daily studio life, and prompts you to better visualize the stories, history and legacy of the Veterans of each branch of the armed forces. The paintings hang in the Committal Hall of the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery north of Little Falls, MN, which is the sacred space where all burials take place. I just finished the last of the five paintings, and now reflect on what lies ahead.  A public celebration and unveiling of the last painting–the Air Force–will be on Sunday, September 15th, 2019 at noon. Until then… This project is their story. I am the artist. It has been the honor of my lifetime to tell these stories.