2014 MSAA Art Showcase Entrants

View this month’s Artist of the Month

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Laura Patchen – Pittsford, NY

I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in November of 1998. At the time, my daughters were just 8, 10 and 13, and I had a flourishing career as a speech-language pathologist in private practice. I feared that my life would change, and it has, but not quite in the ways I thought it would. I had to stop working in 2005, due to physical and cognitive limitations. It was difficult to give up something I loved to do, but eventually, I’ve found other things, including painting. The “Alma Mater” is the building my speech classes were held in….a wink to the past, and a fond memory. The Italian Villa was created after a trip to Italy to celebrate our 25th anniversary in 2008. I had to use a scooter for much of the time, but it didn’t dampen my spirits. The Old Stone Church was a spot in Maine, where the peacefulness of the church set on the edge of a bay was inspiring to me. Life goes on, MS causes changes, but being able to document important memories in acrylics helps me cope.

 

Alma Mater


The Italian Villa


The Old Stone Church