2018 UNSUNG

Unsung (2018)

"The Difference-Makers. These transporting portraits are beautiful meditations in paint on great women and men like Rachel Carson, who wrote the world-changing Silent Spring, and Hugh Thompson Jr., the helicopter pilot who tried to halt the 1968 My Lai massacre. Each is rendered lovingly and intensely; the works impart that the chariot to greatness comes in many forms and that every artist is also one of these mighty figures, laboring with passion in private shadows." JERRY SALTZ, New York Magazine, April 15, 2018

CANDY LIGHTNER (b. 1946) "The road through grief is a rocky one. Traveling along it requires courage, patience, wisdom, and hope." Founded Mothers Against Drunk Driving, one of the most influential non-profit organizations in the United States, after a drunk driver killed her 13-year-old daughter. CANDY LIGHTNER, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

MOSE WRIGHT (1890-1973) “There he is….and there’s Mr. Bryant.” Preacher who faced threats against his life when he testified against the men who murdered his nephew Emmett Till, the fourteen-year old African-American boy brutally abducted, tortured, and murdered for allegedly whistling at a white woman. MOSE WRIGHT, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

WILLIAM GRIFFITH WILSON (1895-1971) “We are not cured of alcoholism. What we have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.” Known as Bill W., wrote Alcoholics Anonymous: Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous after being admitted to hospitals over four times for his growing alcoholism which, he was told, would lead to his death. BILL WILSON, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

HUGH THOMPSON JR. (1943-2006) “I'm going to go over and get them out of the bunker myself. If the squad opens up on them, shoot 'em.” Vietnam War hero who landed his helicopter in the line of fire between American troops and Vietnamese civilians to stop the 1968 My Lai Massacre, pointing his own guns at the U.S. soldiers to prevent more killings, then evacuating civilians against the orders of his superiors. HUGH THOMPSON JR., 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

LILLY LEDBETTER (b. 1938) “We sought justice because equal pay for equal work is an American value. And, in a 5-4 (Supreme Court) decision, they stood on the side of those who short-changed my pay, my overtime, and my retirement just because I am a woman.” Worked for 19 years before realizing she was paid thousands of dollars less than male colleagues of the same seniority, became the plaintiff in the discrimination case Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co which led to the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. LILLY LEDBETTER, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

W.E.B. DU BOIS (1868-1963) "The cost of liberty is less than the price of repression." Sociologist, historian, author, civil rights activist and co-founder of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). W.E.B.DU BOIS, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

DOLORES HUERTA (b. 1930) “Every moment is an organizing opportunity, every person a potential activist, every minute a chance to change the world.” Latino activist, co-founder of the National Farm Workers of America Union, coined the famous slogan, Sí se puede — Spanish for "Yes, we can", arrested over twenty-two times for protesting against causes that harm agricultural labor unions, women’s rights, and LGBTQ+ rights. DOLORES HUERTA, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

WILLIAM MOORE MCCULLOCH (1901-1980) “I know that you, more than anyone, were responsible for the civil rights legislation of the 1960s. You made a personal commitment to President Kennedy in October 1963, against all the interests of your district. When he was gone, your personal integrity and character were such that you held to that commitment despite enormous pressure and political temptations not to do so.” Jacqueline Kennedy Republican member of the House of Representatives instrumental in passing the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the most important law of the 20th century, though considered political suicide. WILLIAM MOORE MCCULLOCH, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

DR. PAUL FARMER (b. 1959) "The idea that some lives matter less is the root of all that is wrong with the world." Physician known for his humanitarian work in developing countries, co-founder of Partners in Health created to provide a preferential option for the poor in healthcare, to serve as an antidote to despair. DR. PAUL FARMER, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

NOAM CHOMSKY (b. 1928) “Our only real hope for democracy is that we get the money out of politics entirely and establish a system of publicly funded elections.” Activist, dissident, “father of modern linguistics”, one of the most critically engaged public intellectuals and cited scholars in modern history. NOAM CHOMSKY, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

LOIS JENSON (b.1948) “It was like they'd never seen a woman before.” A single mom simply trying to feed her children as one of the few female miners working in the Minnesota iron mines, which resulted in filing the first US class action sexual harassment lawsuit. LOIS JENSON, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

MARVIN J. SONOSKY (1909-1997) "We used to joke about how long it took. But now a lot of people don't want the money. They want the land." Frank Lawrence, Standing Rock Tribal Chairman Washington, D.C. lawyer, and the artist’s great uncle, who championed the cause of Native Americans litigating for 24 years the first land claim for the sacred North and South Dakota lands where the Dakota Access pipeline now runs. MARVIN SONOSKY, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

AMY GOODMAN (b. 1957) “I've learned in my years as a journalist that when a politician says 'That's ridiculous' you're probably on the right track.” American journalist, author, and independent news broadcaster on Democracy Now!, named "guardian of truth" by Rolling Stone magazine. AMY GOODMAN, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

MOHAMMAD SALMAN HAMDANI (1977-2001) “He gave his life. They tried to take away his dignity in death and they cannot do it.” Talat Hamdani, Mohammad’s Mother Pakistani American, New York City Police Cadet and Emergency Medical Technician who, during 9/11 rushed towards the smoke to save others, yet, because of his Muslim background was investigated for terrorism before his body was found under the rubble of the World Trade Center. MUHAMMED SALMAN HAMDANI, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

RACHEL CARSON (1907-1964) “But man is a part of nature, and his war against nature is inevitably a war against himself.” Considered godmother of the environmental movement and best known for Silent Spring (1962) which focused on the dangers of pesticides and the disinformation from the chemical industries. RACHEL CARSON, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

EDWARD W. BROOKE III (1919-2015) “The polarization of Congress; the decline of civility; and the rise of attack politics in the 1980s, the 1990s, and the early years of the new century are a blot on our political system and a disservice to the American people.” The first African American elected to the United States Senate by popular vote and one of the first Republicans to call on Nixon to resign in light of the Watergate Scandal. EDWARD BROOKE III, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

RICHARD OAKES (1942–1972) “This is the beginning of our fight for justice and self-determination.” Mohawk Native American activist who introduced Native American studies in university curricula, spurred changes in US federal government policy toward Native Americans, led the occupation of Alcatraz Island, died of a gunshot wound at the age of 30. RICHARD OAKES 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

JANE JACOBS (1916-2006) “Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” Urban writer and activist who stopped the Robert Moses Lower Manhattan Expressway, wrote The Death and Life of Great American Cities. JANE JACOBS, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

SYLVIA RAE RIVERA (1951-2002) “Hell hath no fury like a drag queen scorned.” One of the country’s first transgender activists who, at age 11 was kicked out of her home because of her effeminate behavior, began working as a prostitute but rose to become a seminal leader of the LGBT Rights movement. SYLVIA RAE RIVERA, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

GLENN GREENWALD (b. 1967) “Transparency is for those who carry out public duties and exercise public power. Privacy is for everyone else.” Investigative journalist, co-founder of The Intercept, best known for his contact with Edward Snowden and his reporting on global surveillance. GLENN GREENWALD, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches

JERRIE COBB (b. 1931) “I would give my life to fly in space.” Pilot and first woman to pass qualifying exams for astronaut training in 1960 though Congress denied her a position at NASA because of her gender. JERRIE COBB, 2018, oil on linen, 12 x 9 inches