I Never Promised you a Rose Garden by cynTHIA

I Never Promised you a Rose Garden
Watercolor Pencil
20" x 24"
$290

One artist’s view of Spectrum Artworks:

I was terrified to walk into Spectrum the first time because it meant I was admitting that I have a mental illness. It has taken many years and countless hospitalizations for me to acknowledge and accept that I have a mental illness. I graduated from college with a BFA 17 years ago, but due to my mental illness have only been able to complete one or two paintings a year. This past year I experienced several personal crises and psychiatric hospitalizations. In late summer of 2008 my mental health worker introduced me to Spectrum ArtWorks and helped me to prepare for the interview to join the program. Since being accepted, I have done 10 paintings and this is my second show. ArtWorks provides the opportunity to work alongside many talented and expressive artists. I feel inspired and have a willingness to take new risks. I am proud to be part of this group and am grateful for the opportunity to experience personal growth while increasing community awareness. The Spectrum ArtWorks Program, through providing me with workspace, art supplies, supportive staff and creative peers encourages my growth as an individual artist.


I Never Promised you a Rose Garden is blue because:

I Never Promised you a Rose Garden is a piece about the complexity of our relationships. Roses, like people we meet in our lifetime are complex and full of contradictions. The rose, like most of us is beautiful and thorny, simple but intricate, soft yet sturdy. Some relationships grow alongside us while others weave in and out of our lives. In our journeys with the people we love we experience great joy and sadness (the blues)