Gruesome images of death and war seem foreign to young Americans.  Often, we neglect the immense suffering that takes place in other parts of the world as a result of war and violence.  In this portfolio, I hoped to investigate themes of physical and emotional trauma.  As an avid learner, it has been astounding to learn of the atrocities of war and their effect on young men and women my own age.  The effects of war are long-lasting, and childhood suffering is brought into adulthood in most cases, even manifested in PTSD.

Some of these pieces depict brokenness in shards or cracks; one painting even has small sharp fragments of glass mirror on it, mingling the face of the viewer with the crying painted face.  A face painted upon the plywood silhouette of the soldier is left up to viewers: is he the soldier, a figment of the soldier's memory, or the face at the other side of the scope?  Symbolism was important to me when creating this portfolio, which is why I dwelt on color as well. Red frayed thread appears to have been ripped out of the cloth body of a doll;  this is intended to be a suggestion of blood.  The vibrancy in which the toys are depicted almost overshadows the disturbing qualities of the paintings, like the bombs dropping in the backgrounds of two such pieces.  

When this portfolio is viewed, I hope one message is clear: victims of war must not be overlooked.  Sadly, perhaps the most heart wrenching way of achieving this goal is to depict the effects of war on children.