I met Laurie when we were both 11 years old, when she moved in from another town. From the start we bonded, and the silly adventures we had throughout our youth could fill volumes! Both of us had rough childhoods and leaned on one another for support. Laurie was one of the most empathic, compassionate, creative and intelligent people I knew, but she was often the target of bullying and shunning. She is on the Autism Spectrum and has significant sensory integration problems that affect her daily functioning and her social skills.

She also struggled with life-threatening health problems and had several surgeries over the years for an atypical form of Crohn’s Disease and other issues. Despite all of these challenges, she put herself through grad school, became a mental health counselor for abused and neglected children, she authored a book and started a business, all on her own. Most importantly, she adopted Brycen when he was 11 years old, a child who is also on the Autism Spectrum and who had a severe abuse history. Brycen was in the foster care system and lived in a total of 10 different homes and facilities. Laurie is the most loving and involved mother! I have watched her help Brycen heal in ways that most people didn’t think was possible. She homeschooled Brycen, and he is building a career as a musician and artist. He loves to invent Dungeons and Dragons “table-top” game modules.

Both Laurie and Brycen have been experiencing severe financial struggles in the past two years due to medical issues and both of them losing hours at work. Laurie’s hours were cut when the company she worked for merged twice in a short period of time. She also had a relapse of Crohn’s and incurred huge medical bills for emergency surgery. Laurie’s social skills and sensory challenges have made it difficult for her to build her business and she has been working hard to increase her hours at work. Brycen has had medical issues this summer relating to his past history of abuse and he lost hours at work this summer.

Laurie recently became involved with Voc Rehab, which will help her with services for her social and sensory challenges. However, the family does not qualify for any other community or federal services. They have been denied town assistance, food stamps and the services of local charities because their income is considered just above the poverty line. They do not have any other family members who can assist them. Although Laurie’s hours have just increased, the family are several months behind on bills to the point where they cannot catch up, and they are being threatened with shut off notices and losing their apartment and car. Please help me help Laurie and Brycen get back on their feet again!

Sincerely,

Brenden Sanborn

Each Painting has a starting bid of $100 and will go to a max of $400. Both paintings are signed by the artist and dated and come with FREE shipping to anywhere in the world. 

To bid please leave your bid amount in the comments section below.

]]> http://brendensanborn.com/helping-a-friend-in-need/feed/ 9 6718 http://brendensanborn.com/i-no-longer-have-patience-for-certain-things/ http://brendensanborn.com/i-no-longer-have-patience-for-certain-things/#respond Tue, 02 Sep 2014 20:01:21 +0000 http://www.brendensanborn.com/?p=6695

I love 95% of the movies that Meryl Streep has starred in and 100% of her acting on those movies. I found this wonderful quote of hers on the internet and I immediate knew that it was time to finally do a painting of her. I hope that the quote speaks to you and this is my tribute to her.

“I no longer have patience for certain things, not because I’ve become arrogant, but simply because I reached a point in my life where I do not want to waste more time with what displeases me or hurts me. I have no patience for cynicism, excessive criticism and demands of any nature. I lost the will to please those who do not like me, to love those who do not love me and to smile at those who do not want to smile at me. I no longer spend a single minute on those who lie or want to manipulate. I decided not to coexist anymore with pretense, hypocrisy, dishonesty and cheap praise. I do not tolerate selective erudition nor academic arrogance. I do not adjust either to popular gossiping. I hate conflict and comparisons. I believe in a world of opposites and that’s why I avoid people with rigid and inflexible personalities. In friendship I dislike the lack of loyalty and betrayal. I do not get along with those who do not know how to give a compliment or a word of encouragement. Exaggerations bore me and I have difficulty accepting those who do not like animals. And on top of everything I have no patience for anyone who does not deserve my patience.”

– Meryl Streep

You can see all their latest shows by visiting: www.hitw.org.

I found this list by Keri Smith while surfing the internet and it rang true to everything that I was going through as an artist. So I thought I would post it here in case you didn’t see it already. This piece has been more popular that I ever imagined. It seems to have own life now.

I love that this list has been somewhat controversial to some, it garners a slightly hostile response in a few people (who wrote me expressing upset with it’s “negative” feel). You should probably know by now that I love any work that provokes a unique response from every reader. All of my work is based on this. When I read it I felt it was innately positive so the response is interesting to me.

I’m curious to hear what you think…

So, to bring more energy to my works, I would paint “just enough” to give the viewing experience a sense of mystery. I’m think I’m still there, but I also want to appreciate the male form in all it’s glory.

So, I started with a few sketches and decided that when I did my first nude work in years that it would be one that made a statement.

I realized while I was painting this work that I was really making a statement. Certainly not the first of it’s kind, but a statement none-the-less.

The colors were becoming richer and more vibrant. The energy of the piece was coming to life and I was once again feeling free to express the male nude as a beautiful vessel.

and what finally emerged was this..

What do you think? I would love to hear your comments…

]]> http://brendensanborn.com/journey-of-the-nude-male/feed/ 22 6330 http://brendensanborn.com/artwork-featured-on-threedaygallery-com/ http://brendensanborn.com/artwork-featured-on-threedaygallery-com/#respond Wed, 18 Sep 2013 11:52:03 +0000 http://www.brendensanborn.com/?p=6129 I’m very excited to announce that my art, “Come on Home” is being featured on the website www.threedaygallery.com. Three Day Gallery is a community of talented artists, supported by creative people. It’s an eclectic group of artists with amazing talent and I am honored to be on the website.

My work can be bought directly from the website as an archival or canvas print! They make great gifts for any occasion and the print will be shipped directly to your home.

“Come on Home” was inspired by the emotions I was feeling during a huge transition in my life. The toughness of the subject with the softness of the bird is a reflection of the passions I was experiencing while trying to deal with a range of life’s insights.

You have a range of options!

Giclee Prints:

• Small: 10” x 10””
• Large: 16” x 16”
• UV protection
• Eco-friendly
• No VOC off-gassing
• Stretcher bars made to order from renewable resource hardwood (2” solid wood frames)
• Cross bracing provided every 36”
• Corners braced on larger prints for stability

Archival Fine Prints:

• Small: 10” x 10”
• Large: 16” x 16”

Papers and Frames

• All print papers are fiber based, 100% lignin free, alpha-cellulose and acid free
• All framed prints custom-matted with board that compliments the artwork
• Frames use premium perplex (clearer/lighter than glass)

Certification
Art buyers receive a certification for each print they purchased. It contains sealed information about the artist. It is mounted on the back of each piece and stamped with our Three Day Gallery seal.

I just ask that you follow some simple rules:

• Please give the painting a title and a short paragraph on what you see and feel from this painting
• Make sure you share your expression to your Facebook wall so others can join in and you can get LIKES
• Feel free to enter more than once!
• Please be respectful and considerate of others when posting your entry
• All entries must be posted below on my website www.brendensanborn.com 

One lucky winner will get this original painting shipped to them. The contest is open for entries from all countries until October 31, 2013.

Here’s how it will work:

• People will read your title and entry and it’s your job to get people to LIKE your comment.
• The top three people to get the most “LIKES” next to their comment will move on to the final round.
• Once the top three are chosen, the three comments will be posted to my Facebook page where there will be one final vote and that person will win the original!
• A minimum of 25 people must enter in order for the contest to move on to the final round.

Most importantly HAVE FUN! 

All the hard work and determination over the last year to make this a successful show paid off. There were many long nights over the past year and lots of missed dinners with friends but I wouldn’t change a thing.

I must confess to being a bit of an agnostic when it comes to a belief in talent. Talent is a product-orientated word. It has no depth to the human experience inherent in the creative act. The term is so charged that whether people believe they have it or not, the label traps everyone in a cage of expectations. Those expectations (“I can’t do anything” or “I must do something”) alienate people from the spontaneous joy of the process.

While I agree that certain individuals possess the right body for gymnastics, can instinctively identify middle C, or have the natural ability to create a likeness with a paintbrush, I believe that these predispositions are only a starting point. It is too easy to think of talent as some kind of divine dowry bestowed on certain people that makes them better than everyone else.

If talent is to be a factor in the success of any person, it must be combined with discipline, tenacity, relentless dedication, and the ability to sacrifice the ego for the sake of the process. I have known many people who use talent as an excuse for not trying. If you are either hiding behind the “T” word or using it as a shield, it’s time to assess this issue in a realistic way so that you can have some fun and stand up with dignity for your own creative potential. Honor your desire and the right to devote whatever time you need to your self-expression.

I leave you with a few reflective questions to better help you assess your belief and assumptions about your own creative potential while developing an understanding of your personal evolution. It’s my hope that you may have gained new important insights through the creative process. Feel free to write these questions and answers in your sketchbook, journal, or I welcome you to express your thoughts in the comments section below.

1. Do I live with a personal myth about my talent? If so, what is it and where did it come from?
2. Am I living with someone else’s expectations? What kind of effect is this having on me?
3. Of my personal acquaintances and family members, whom do I consider to be talented? Why do I think this of them? What is their talent? Do I know the story of their development, or do I assume that they’ve had none? (I suggest that you talk with these people about their talent.)
4. What talents do I possess? What do other people consider to be my talents? (Don’t be afraid to ask.)

Creative mediation offers deep personal renewal and a joyful sense of self-esteem. It promotes recognition of our human connection to the Universe and the divine life force that is our essence. Creative meditation is a process of freeing the flow of creativity in individuals as well as society.

This is an expressive spiritual practice based on the belief that creativity is a sacred Universal energy, a manifestation of the divine. While the human concept of God has taken many forms, one aspect of divinity connects creeds and practices around the world; that God as supreme creator. In this regard it is natural to recognize that we are most divinely inspired when we exercise our creative impulses and display our passionate emotions, for those are the earthly energies that stimulate transformation, manifest self-expression, and create global change.

Creativity is a combination of making something happen and letting something happen, so creative meditation has two stages, one quiet and still, the other spontaneously active and dynamic. Creative mediation is not product orientated; I use it as a painter to free myself from the preoccupation with the final outcome. The result of this freedom is a more rewarding and self-affirming creative experience. Over the years using this process, I’ve developed drawing and painting skills and techniques all the while relaxing and releasing the body’s energy, allowing it to flow.

Just as I spoke about in my last blog post, I began to see beyond the surface of things and explore there true presence. In this way, creative mediation is a prayerful integration of play, self-discovery, community building, and aesthetic spirituality.

“Creativity is a different quality of spiritual life than humility and asceticism; it is the revelation of the god-like nature of humanity.” – Nicholas Berdyaev