This painting was created in the months following the passage of Hurricane Katrina. All of the pictures you see in the work were taken by me in the Lakeview and the Ninth Ward area. Also, you will see in the bottom right-hand side of the painting, a poem which was composed by my husband, a Lieutenant in th Coast Gaurd, in our home only days after the storm. He wrote this poem based on his observations of the devastation from the storm. Below, is the poem, as it is written on the painting.

A FRIGHTENING SIGHT

The bubbling brackish water beneath my feet, rising without regard,
Screaming wind, darkness, shadows moving on the wall, the sky consumes everything,
Trees in the yard bowing to the ground in reverence, it’s too late for me to go,
The walls rattle and cower with me, pretending to be strong enough,
Streaks of hell smack the earth, every minute, now each second, oh my God…
Fear pounds my chest, all alone – in my head, my feet are cold,
The door greets Mother Nature, for a moment in time, she whispers to me on my chair…
A spinner explodes my neighbor’s home, taking the roof and all clinging to its ribs,
Shingles and rusty nails pierce my windows, Mother Nature howls and grins at me,
Sitting there, so calm while I tremble, no hiding, not from her, the Presence,
My parents’ image makes its way to my bedroom; I make my way upstairs…
My ears are pierced by an overwhelming shriek, what is She doing?
Where can I go? Where can I hide?  The door resists the entrapping spoils,
The liquid seeks me out, captains and their crews are dead now,
No lifelines, helpless, frozen in my new found grace, praying for Her to leave,
I hear a tapping on my door…it’s Her…

Bewilderment was shown in the following exhibitions in 2006

- OHR Rising Juried Exhibition, OHR O’Keefe Museum of Art, Biloxi, MS

- Debris, Gulf Coast Regional Exhibition, LSU School of Art Gallery, Shaw Center for the Arts

During the painting's travels between Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida, the frame was slightly damaged in the top right hand corner. There is absolutely no damage to the painting which measures 36" X 24" on paper. The frame may be salvagable but there is the potential that it may need replacement. For this reason, I am selling the painting for $700. Although this painting holds sentimental value to me and my husband, I feel that it should hang somewhere public so that the events of Katrina are never forgotten.

Purchase A Print and View My Husband's Other Poem>>>