ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Earlier this year, Safe Alliance contacted artist Elizabeth Palmisano to create artwork for the 2024 Breakfast of Hope marketing materials. As they discussed the possibilities, Elizabeth asked if Safe Alliance would be open to her facilitating an expressive arts workshop with their staff to inspire the work she would create.

In May 2024, Elizabeth Palmisano met with Safe Alliance staff for an expressive arts workshop. As staff participated in collaborative mark-making, Elizabeth led a discussion, asking questions like" What is the best part of your job?" and "What do you wish the public knew about the work that you do?"  Compassion and empathy are two words that came up several times during the discussion. At the end of the workshop, Elizabeth asked each staff member to write down a wish—something they desired for themselves. 

This collaboration resulted in 12 miniature pieces of art. Elizabeth took these 12 pieces and the wishes back to her studio and created this piece, Compassion in Bloom. 

Elizabeth created this intuitive piece by drawing inspiration from the conversation and imagery from the collaborative workshop pieces. She wrote staff wishes on the canvas between each layer of paint and collaged parts of the workshop art onto the final layer. Upon its completion, she was struck by the presence of lotus-like flowers in the composition, a poignant reminder of the Safe Alliance logo's symbolism. 

Website: ellafaeart.com
Facebook and Instagram: @ellafaeart