Breaking the Silence:
Janine Wesselmann Gives a Voice to Courage
Danbury,CT – Internationally recognized impressionist Janine
Wesselmann announces the highly anticipated production of a print
series of her acclaimed painting, America's Heroes.
The limited edition Iris Giclée prints are currently available.
The original 20-by-30-inch oil on canvas pays homage to the heroic
spirit of the ground zero firefighters and was painted just two
blocks from the World Trade Center within days of the disaster.
Wesselmann's tribute was not only an outlet for her grief and shock
but an opportunity to voice long silenced horror at the atrocities
of warfare.
The daughter of an officer of the Federal Agency for International
Development, Wesselmann's childhood was shaped in such politically
tumultuous countries as Kenya, Iran, and Haiti. Within this threatening
climate, Wesslemann was forced to suppress her natural inclination
to protest the violence around her, especially the hate crimes perpetrated
against Americans. Thus, her chief mode of expression became her
artwork, eventually resulting in her appointment as an American
"cultural diplomat" to Italy and later France.
The news of the September 11 attacks reawakened Wesselmann's childhood
memories, and she immediately rushed from her home in West Redding,
CT, drawn to the tragedy by her deep empathy for America's fallen
heroes: "I didn’t have a choice but to go to New York,
I had to go because the events...permeated my being...The focus
was on the feeling of shock, courage, and hope I had while painting,
and I was trying to communicate that feeling. I felt a call to action."
Response to Wesselmann's vision of unified strength in the face
of tragedy has been overwhelming. A number of European museums are
waiting in turn to display the painting, and New York City firefighters
have expressed interest in immortalizing Wesselmann's image as a
national firefighting icon.
On a personal level, the creation of America's Heroes has allowed
Wesselmann to embrace her family's contribution to a past that once
disturbed her and adapt her father's legacy to her own life as am
artistic ambassador of faith in the human spirit. "I'm realizing
that one of the roles of the artist in times of uncertainty is to
express the search for meaning in the human experience. We are all
one in a time of crisis, "Wesselmann says. And just like the
newly united voice of the American people, Wesslemann's voice of
hope is one that will resound for generations.
To inquire about Giclée prints of America’s Heroes,
contact DRC Publishing at (203) 743-4611, or view Wesslemann’s
prints online at www.drcpublishing.com. The signed and numbered,
oil embellished Giclée prints on canvas are available in
two sizes, a 19"x 12.5"edition of 250 for $475.00 each
and a 14" x 9.25" edition of 350 for $275.00 each.
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