Four Sisters in Remedial Reading

“Four Sisters in Remedial Reading” 29 x 24 is a watercolor bath painting created in 2016. The title and topic proved to be very controversial in the 2017 New England Watercolor Society Members show at the Guild of Boston Artists on Newbury Street in Boston, MA, where the title was changed to “Special Education Affects of Four Sisters” as a means to soften the controversy. The image and title made some people feel uncomfortable. I wanted the viewer to feel like they are in a special education classroom with these four sisters.

The painting attempts to express the affects children face in education when diagnosed with a learning disorder. The contorted skewed faces are brought down by long trailing hair which represents a very long hard journey. The squirming bodies represent the pronounced individuality children with learning disorders possess. The body and facial expressions reveal the hardships of facing very difficult learning disorders on a daily basis.