Artist: Sharlene Schmidt

Title of Piece: Contemplation

About the Piece: “Contemplation” was painted while I was on 24hr watch over my Suicidal Asperger’s teenage son, noting that in some stage in everyone’s life we all feel lost, a need for belonging and love, the pain in the darkness can be carried by the surrounding light. This is not just a painting of a boy but a painting of the human spirit, contemplating life; will he move on? Will he stay still? Will someone put out their hand and say its ok? Regardless of life experience, at some stage we have all been here, this one moment that is life’s contemplation of our next move.

About the Artist: After a series of serious accidents I have had server ongoing pain, but have witnessed deeper pain, attending many young friends funerals after they have taken their own lives through their mental anguish’s, My husbands ongoing pain during and after a full years of chemo and operations to clear cancer. My aspergers son, whom is often depressed and suicidal, The mental pain is so much worse to deal with than just my physical pain, watching the people I love suffer, I take their pain on, and though my physical pain is stifling horrendous it will always be less than the pain of watching others suffer.