Artwork Inspired by Living with Serious Illness
After suffering multiple high-risk seizures and living with Lupus, a chronic, life-limiting illness, Angela was told she had six months left to live.
Yet, she continued to rise above, counting her blessings and appreciating the beauty in each day. Under Arbor Hospice’s care, she received support and comfort in her end-of-life journey. Eventually, she graduated to palliative care, where she continues to receive help with symptom management and medical decisions.
As end-of-life advocates and art collectors, Angela and her husband recently donated numerous pieces of artwork to show their appreciation and gratitude to Arbor Hospice and to bless others living with serious illness.
Each art piece was a reminder for Angela of the complexity and beauty in her story. She hopes to bless others living with serious illness, reminding them of their immeasurable value and to find beauty in the small moments of life.
Angela shares these words about the artwork:
“These pieces were gifts to me during times when I was very ill from Lupus. The butterfly is a mascot, if you will, for lupus. The rash many Lupus patients get looks like butterfly wings, thus called “butterfly rash”. You will also notice the flower and butterfly in Amy Parker’s photograph. My friends consider echinacea flowers closely akin to Lupus because butterflies are attracted to them.”
“The piece by Chris Kobler was gifted to me while I was sick in Asheville, NC. He was a chef and baker who owned a restaurant, and he knew firsthand what it was like living with a serious illness. He created the artwork telling me to “Get well, baby,” thus the title.”
“Nina Howard is a dear friend and a mother figure to me. She lives both here and in North Carolina and once owned Bella Nina Salon in downtown Ann Arbor. She donates many paintings to various nonprofits and is very famous in the modern art world. I already have so much of her art I decided I could share this one. The colors are joyful and make me smile – I hope they make others smile, too.”
“Vadim’s drawing of a mother and child touched my soul. He donated it to an auction for the Lupus organization I directed in NC years ago. I wanted it myself, so I purchased it and kept it on my walls for years. It’s brought me comfort every time I’ve looked at it. I know how blessed I was to have the comfort of hospice during my times of close death.”
Stay tuned to hear more about Angela’s hospice experience and what she learned about end-of-life care.