Art by Marie Scott

hanging out the wash (“Haiti: We Have Not Forgotten” part 3/5)

Marie Scott Art

16 years ago

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How do you stay clean while living in a tent? How do you live in a tent with strangers? How do you move on when your life and city has been devastated by an earthquake?

I do not know.

I’ve spent seven days trying to untangle a very complicated painting. But that’s about my biggest problem these days. What would it be like to have your home crumble in ruins? What would it be like to be a child whose parents disappear. For good.

I do not know.

I’m painting this piece called “HAITI: We Have Not Forgotten” for the sole purpose of raising money to help care for the orphans in Haiti. It will be auctioned off at the 2010 Together for Adoption National Conference, which is being held in Austin, TX on October 1-2.

Here’s some photos of days 5, 6, and 7 of my painting progress.

Here's where I left off yesterday (on DAY FIVE.)

DAY FIVE: This morning I've been painting more "house" tents and adding laundry to the lines.

More tents and laundry. I've also add my first little people to the painting.

Here they are closer. I think the guy in the orange is fixing a bike.

I finished another "house" tent and then moved down into the tents on the street.

Here's a close-up.

Now I've started working on that big white trailer. What is it? It's so clean and new (except for the graffiti.)

Here's where I had left off on DAY FIVE.

DAY SIX: Today I've been working on the trailer along with the street in front of it. Oh my. All this tiny detail is so hard to see clearly enough to paint. It's like unraveling a big visual knot.

Here's a close-up of the start of my "visual untangling."

I'm going to start filling in the sketch again. Here's the paints I'll be using to mix my colors.

I got a lot more areas sketched in, but not too many colored in. This is a slow-going process.

DAY SEVEN: I'm adding some more detail to the street that's shown in the distance on the left.

This photo shows that I added in the large building on the far left. A good part of it will be covered by the trees, but it still needs to be there.

Here's just a photo of all my little paper towel pieces. I wipe my brush off on them every time I use a new color. They are blowing all around my studio today.

Now I've done the umbrellas and more of the street on the left side of the painting.

More umbrellas. More hidden details to uncover.

Just stepping back...

I added color to all the tents in the middle of the painting. Time's up... time to pick up my son from school!

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As I delve into this painting, I’m struck by all the laundry hanging out to dry. It appears that these people living in these huge tents have hung up clothes lines between the tents that they are living in. If you were living in a tent–with strangers I’m assuming–can you even imagine doing laundry?

But life goes on after tragedy. I’ve heard reports from friends who’ve visited Haiti, about the joy that they’ve seen in the midst of rubble.

How is that possible? That is something only Peace with God can produce.

If these questions stir your heart like they do mine, please spend a little time thinking about how you can help restore some sense of order to the lives of children who have been touched by the earthquake in Haiti.

Here are just a few organizations worth supporting.

Build an orphanage in Haiti

World Orphans work in Haiti

2010 Together For Adoption National Conference

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