Artists Registry

Triumph of America
We were shocked; we suffered; we did not know what was happening. We watched as repeated attacks occurred. Then we wondered. Our bothers, their sons, our uncles, our nephews were in those buildings. Are they okay; did they survive? Time went on. First we heard from the brother. He had escaped from the building, just like he had from the 1994 attack. Then we waited and waited. What about Todd? Oh, he called his mother; said he was on his way out. Then nothing. Waiting, waiting, waiting. He is not among those who emerged. He was on the 102th floor. What happened and where is he? The hours and days go by; it becomes clear; he had not made it. No trace of him has revealed itself. He is gone. At last we accept it. He is among the thousands who lost their lives on that day. It is no longer a matter of waiting. It is only a matter of accepting. He is gone. We may find remands of him, but we will never find Todd. He is among those who died from the attacks. He is an innocent victim of misplaced ideals and acts that are abhorrent to all societies, worldwide. There is nothing we can think, say or do that will make any difference. He is gone; he will not come back.
I had seen Todd and taken pictures of the World Trade Towers only a week before - now neither existed. They were gone. I visited the ground-zero site. It was as if an atomic bomb had detonated. I looked, I photographed and I mourned. A war, a war had occurred here on our soil.
Not knowing how else to react I “painted.” I created our county, our flag and the blood that flowed across all. It was never enough. It was never an adequate tribute. In the end my decision was to depict both the horror of the moment and our recovery from it. We are the county that created freedom. We are the country who has proven to the world that we cannot be conquered or defeated. We will rise from this with greater and more determination. It was clear to me that to commemorate this event we needed to see the horror, the determination and the recovery from the tragedy.
The American spirit cannot be stopped. We can debate the exact form of the recovery, but we have no doubt that a recovery will occur. My intent in these works is to graphically show how a massive tragic event can occur, how we can move forward and can rise above it with even greater determination. Words cannot describe this. I can only vaguely convey it in these words, but I can more intensively proclaim it in these three works. Accept them in the spirit of that day and our recovery from it.

As we approach another anniversary of these attacks, we should all pause to consider how, as a nation, we must continue to rise above this tragedy.

The Wounding of America - Represents the initial destruction and horror of the 9/11 attacks.
Angels of Light - Depicts the beginning of recovery as white light emerging from the three sites of attack.
The New Spirit - Demonstrates America’s ability to recover from the worst of our national tragedies with a renewed sense of determination.