Manhattan Arts International presents “The Spirit of Resilience”, a visual tour de force created during the COVID-19 pandemic. This permanent online exhibition features art and statements submitted from several members of the Manhattan Arts International online gallery. Prepare yourself to be inspired and enlightened as you view a powerful range of expressions in different styles and mediums that convey the spirit and power of resilience found in the human experience and in the natural world.
The word resilience originally comes from the Latin word “resalire” which means springing back. Resilience has been defined as the ability to recover from hardships, adapt well to change, and persevere in the face of challenges and adversity. We felt the timing was perfect to present “The Spirit of Resilience” 2022 exhibition. May it provide the inspiration, fortitude and positivity you need.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. DO NOT REPRODUCE IMAGES WITHOUT THE ARTISTS’ PERMISSION.
Please visit the artists’ websites and contact them directly to inquire about their artwork and to purchase it.
Banner image: Detail of “The Plague Dr. Is In… Again” by Valerie Patterson
Valerie Patterson
valeriepatterson.com
The Plague Dr. Is In… Again, watercolor, 27″ x 35″.
“The children depicted in this painting represent the resilience of youth both physically and emotionally to illness. Their Covid symptoms are often mild and they tend to be more emotionally grounded than the adults around them. Children are natural optimists.”
Nancy Reyner
nancyreyner.com
Sea Spirit, acrylic on panel, 40″ x 30″.
“Positive thinking is often misunderstood. It is not sticking your head in the sand, denying life’s shadow side. Instead, it is the essence of resilience – and key to happiness. Positive thinking allows me to bounce back from outside events not in my control, and is therefore my work’s focus. My paintings exhibit life enhancing imagery from nature, and encourage the viewer to look towards the horizon, above the landscape and into the larger universe beyond, for hope and inspiration.”
Barbara Brown
barbarabrownart.com
Graceful Elderberry, oil on canvas, 18″ x 14″.
“The epitome of resilience, this Graceful Elderberry grows strong, wild and free in the forest where I live. Symbolic of rebirth and regeneration, Elderberries rapidly regrow broken branches and will take root and shoot up anew from the smallest fallen fragment, a faculty critical to their survival as Bears take down limbs to gorge every year on the bounty of sweet berries hanging from the long smooth slender branches. We can learn much about resilience from the forest, from Nature.”
Rajul Shah
rajulshahart.com
A Healer’s Renewal, mixed media on canvas, 16″ x 12″.
“A former patient commissioned and gifted her former surgeon this painting after learning he suffered a stroke while in the hospital with COVID. In an article, the prominent teacher and surgeon spoke of renewed purpose and resilience, while he held up a dish repaired by the Japanese Art of Kintsugi, where broken pottery is repaired with gold splicing and tree sap. The hands signify the Kintsugi repair after the stroke. Lotus signifies rebirth. Dragonfly is indicating change and transformation.”
Andrea Robinson
andrearobinson.co.nz
First Light, oil on canvas, 13″ x 16″.
“My painting of the little Kiwi bird is designed to show the resilience in nature. Despite threats to their survival over the past century, the bird has survived. This gives us hope that despite the challenges our environment faces, we can work together to save species and change the management of resources. I hope my artwork encourages people to participate in urgent conservation work and collaborate for better outcomes for our planet.”
Peter N. Van Giesen
peternvangiesen.com
Let Go, acrylic on canvas 12″ x 16″.
“Earth, our home, is a everlasting echo of resilience. Scars maul its surface: mountain ranges, volcanoes, tsunami, deep valleys, rushing winds continuously reshape our planet, all of which end up as BEAUTY to my eye as I capture yet another turn of the daily dial. Painting twilight scenes seduce me to once again, LET GO and enjoy the moment I am in.”
Frantisek Strouhal
frantisekstrouhal.com
Over the Edge, mixed media/lithography inks, 24″ x 21″.
“This work of art ‘Over The Edge’ for me emphasizes the quality of resilience in us. Like a woman falling into the unknown, we all experience some form of adversity. These moments replay themselves in my life, and have brought me to a precipice. The only way I can feel safe is to realize that I fall into a cosmic embrace. As I learn to trust myself and life’s process, I can walk into what I fear, and see and understand in new ways.”
Sandra Duran Wilson
sandraduranwilson.com
Living In the Now, acrylic and mixed media, 60″ x 48″
“This painting ‘Living In the Now’ is based on the Higgs-Boson particle, or sometimes called the God particle. When the particle was discovered, a scientist took the data and sonified it. Then a musician created a song of it. You see elements of the score in the painting. Science is what makes us resilient. The painting also provides an off-world view of the planet. Our collective creativity gives me hope for Resilience.”
Mary Chaplin
mary-chaplin.com/painter
Rainbow, ink on heavy paper 22″ x 30″.
“My husband and I just had Covid 19, though we had been vaccinated, the experience was trying. As soon as I was able to return to the studio, I painted this work using inks. I have called this painting ‘Rainbow’, one of my ‘Silent Reflections’ series. I wanted to find color, force and happiness and seeing the ink slide and mix on the paper helped me to feel completely alive again!”
Sandra Belitza-Vazquez
sbvaz.com
Rescued, photograph, 16″ x 20″.
“In January 2019, I fulfilled my life-long dream of seeing gorillas and chimpanzees in the wild. After visiting Kibale National Park in Uganda and walking for five hours among chimpanzees, I also visited Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Lake Victoria before returning home. It was here that I photographed this rescued chimp taking in his surroundings from atop a branch jutting out from a tall tree. He is truly a symbol of resilience in the face of habitat destruction.”
Bren Sibilsky
brensculpture.com
Bubble Girl, oil on canvas, 9″ x 11″.
“Bubble Girl – She’s in her head again… That beautiful place where all chains and keys lay truth to paths of freedom or cages. Like the labyrinth of confusion, she follows her spirit to resilience, the quiet silent voice of intuition and her higher self. It leads her back to the knowledge of self, who she is born to be, simply free. How magnificent is the transformation through resilience, into the powerful path created with dignity, quietly through all the noise.”
Charlotte Shroyer
charlotteshroyer.com
I Persevered 94 years, monotype with oil, 20″ x 13″.
“I live close to Taos Pueblo where in 1906 Blue Lake was taken from its people by the Federal Government with plans to make the land a Federal Forest Reserve. This land had been a part of Taos Pueblo culture for centuries. It was only in 1970 that Blue Lake was returned to its people. It took another 24 years for the surrounding wilderness to be returned–a total of 94 years. The people of the pueblo persisted in their quest never giving up. I can feel that persistence in the land and its people. Blue Lake is a sacred site for Taos Pueblo and will continue to be so. I know that as an Anglo I cannot go to Blue Lake. I respect that and know the resilience of the pueblo people.”
A Few Famous Quotations About Resilience
“We can do anything we want in life if we stick to it long enough.” ~ Helen Keller
“I am thankful to all those who said NO to me. It is because of them I did it myself.” ~ Albert Einstein
“The little reed bending to the force of the wind, soon stood upright again when the storm had passed over.” ~ Aesop
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Renee,
Thank you for including my painting “Beside Still Waters” in this thought provoking show. I’m honored to exhibit with such an accomplished group of artists. We all benefit from your tenacity and spirit of resilience, as you continue to focus our attention and energy on the positive, uplifting qualities of nature and people around us.
Dear Ruth, It is a privilege to include your art in this exhibition. The uplifting qualities of your art help us focus on the positive attributes of nature and humanity.