S. Rudel

On July 30^th of 2008 my business partners and good friends, Stephanie and Dan Burton’s, 16 year old son, Bryce, was paralyzed by a resistant strain of staph infection (MRSA) that had attached to his spine and was flown to Children’s Hospital in Oakland, Ca. We at Mercat Productions wanted to do a fund raiser to help generate monies to make sure Bryce would receive the medical treatment he needs to walk again. I have watched with the eyes of both mother and grandmother the ordeal my beloved friends are undergoing and have chosen from my collection, “The Power of Motherhood” to be the giclee to be donated for “The Family House” at Children’s Hospital. Family House is for the families with children in long term care and offered for whatever the families can afford by this wonderful facility. I created “The Power of Motherhood” to show the incredible bond women share with their children and the life changing moment when we first hold that new life. Bryce is one of the children fortunate enough to have a wonderful and supporting father but many of the children are raised and nurtured by single mothers or grandmothers who must endure hardships alone and we at Mercat Productions want to help any way we can. What has happened to Bryce Burton has deeply affected all of us close to him, but on my personal visits to Children’s Hospital and seeing all the suffering endured by all the children and their families broke my heart and will affect me forever. I am creating a piece just for my buddy, Bryce, along with other pieces in my collection that Stephanie and I chose together that will be available as well. I will donate 40% of every piece, besides these five, sold at the fundraiser or on the website.

Is my vision of the "mental anguish" of the Cosmic Christ, symbolized by the blood still dripping from the crown of "thorns". The cross of "thorns "on his back is the passageway into the heart of Mother/Father. "If sorrow is not felt, the lesson is not learned; for it is grief that marks the page and number and seals it in the book of our remembrance."

Acrylic on canvas 36”x48”

I created Heaven’s Gate with the concept of the tunnel of light that we travel through when we leave this life. I had a unique experience at the gallery where I first revealed this painting, along with the poem and explanation of my concept that hangs beneath it. At the close of the show, a man approached me and said, “I could not leave without telling you of my near death experience after a massive heart attack. Your painting is exactly what it looks like as you travel toward the light.”