Gesture of Kindness

After experiencing firsthand the violence of the American healthcare system, I began painting bodies changing in unpredictable, uncontrollable ways. I went back and forth about what facial expression to give this man, but I realized that one of horror would feel less authentic than one of passive acceptance. I hadn’t planned on it but, to me, this portrait suggests the powerlessness of living in a wealthy nation that denies its citizens universal healthcare. Most of us just accept that we cannot govern our bodies.