My Archibald/Doug Moran's Entry 2022

My Archibald entry and semifinalist in Doug Moran’s prise in 2022. My model is a young man called Mitchelle Anttilla. When he was only around 42 he got diagnosed with Motor neurone disease. He is still alive, but sadly just connected to a breathing machine and other tubes. It was such a shock for our little community here on Lord Howe Island. Mitch use to work for a local dive shop for years and all the islanders knew him. It was unbelievable to see someone wither away with a such a short time into body thats unable to move, blink, swallow or breath. But the more amazing, he is still alive. We are pretty tuff us humans.

This project came about in couple of months of making. First me and my helpers painted Mitch with orange and then with blue acrylic paint to take his body imprints onto the canvas, where the head was going to be projected largely behind. His is looking through the body that gives him grief. I had to use transparent brown and blue paints to add the details of his face onto the prints because I didn’t want to loose the prints, but I also wanted to make him recognisable. This work got named by my husband, who said that the bum print on a bottom left corner looks like lips and as Mitche’s own lips are close, he called it : ”Kiss My Ass MND!” It’s also a good way to show the attitude how bravely he dealt with the sickness.
The prints and the face are intentionally matched together to make the face look as if it’s crying. During the process, there were more discoveries made by me and others what we saw and what it meant. Back then when Mitch was able to talk, he said that “Yes, that’s me! Just a head left, that I can control.” And at the end we thought he is like a planet in a motor neurone sky. I like that the light is shining onto him and that his steps are going toward this light.
This painting got gifted to Mitches parents.
The painting is as large as a queen bed.
acrylics, oil, canvas.
2022