Africa from Franklin's View



Franklin, at age 14, can tell the stories of Ghana with his pencil and his paintbrush.
His heart is reflected in his art.

Pencil drawing November 7, 2012
Returning Home


"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time."
Thomas Merton

Acrylic - November 9, 2012
Village Life


"A picture is a poem without words."
Horace

Acrylics - Mid December 2012
Scenes of Ghana





“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”

-Pablo Picasso

Pencil Drawing January 16, 2013
A young girl with the eyes of so many children here in Ghana...
"The Eyes Tell the Story"


"An artist is not paid for his labor, but for his vision." 
James Whistler



Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.  He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.
James 1:17

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FISHING IS LIFE

Image
Along the coast and waterways of Ghana, fishing is the most common form of livelihood. During a recent family outing, the boys and I experienced first hand the hard work required of fishermen (and children, unfortunately). We worked for about an hour helping to pull the net in. I'm guessing their net was about 200 to 300 yards long. These fishermen were working the Volta river for their catch. Their net was about 1/10 the size of some of the ocean nets I have seen. I can't imagine the endurance required to fish the ocean.   The net was put out by boat in a horseshoe shape. Two teams of fishermen were at each end of the horseshoe working the net from the beach. We pulled at a steady pace, drawing in the net until our catch was on the beach. By the time we heaved in the net, I had blisters on my fingers and nearly exhausted back, leg, and arm muscles. My pride wouldn't allow me to give up before we pulled in our catch - I was so thankful when we finished. However, the majori...
Read more

Red Dress Girl

A tiny daughter totters in the dirt Attempting the mastery of walking Dust fills the air Mixed with diesel smoke As massive trucks creep along the road But the girl is oblivious Her red dress tickles her legs As she dances in the sun Such a tiny girl Probably under the age of two Brother is close by Hunched over a wash basin Scrubbing yesterday's clothing He bends his forehead into his shoulder Wiping away the sweat, dust, and grime His own shirt stained brown Does he notice? With rhythm, his hands return to harsh scrubbing More trucks spit dust upon the children Mother looks on With desperate, tired brown eyes She is preparing her mangoes to sell Hopeful for customers To buy her soft fruit Because as pieces disappear from her bowl Delicately balanced atop her head There is money to care for her son and daughter Will enough people buy today?  Tomorrow? Mother looks on Staring into a bleak future As her tiny daughter Captures beauty in her uncertain steps As she dances in the sun Da...
Read more

We Are A Letter of Christ

Image
We have some friends who have sponsored children for a long time.  In fact, they sponsor one child for each of their four biological children.  That’s a ratio of 1:1.  A photograph of each child they sponsor hangs in each bedroom.  I love the idea! Joson is one of the children we have sponsored through Feeding the Orphans .  We have kept his picture on our fridge since the beginning of our sponsorship.  We were drawn to him because he is an older boy and we know older boys are usually the last to be chosen.  With five boys of our own, our heart was drawn to his warm smile immediately. Feeding the Orphans offers several opportunities to write the children letters throughout the year.  Volunteers bring the letters and deliver them to the orphans being sponsored in country.  Our family has written to Joson.  Imagine our surprise when we received a neatly handwritten letter back to us!  We couldn’t believe he would take the time to...
Read more