This is a personal project that I am just starting. Currently, I do not pursue art as a full time career, but rather oncology clinical research. As a result, I have been in and out of oncology clinics all over the United States and Canada as I help to verify cancer research on behalf of pharmaceutical and biotech companies as they seek new treatments. Recently, my work in this field hit a new personal note when a good family friend was diagnosed. I had been wanting to do an angel painting series and one day it all came together for me.

I was in the airport about to fly out to San Antonio for a work trip when I received a phone call with positive news about the family friend and his status. After the call, I finally had my inspiration. I sat in the airport and on the plane and sketched a series of angel paintings. One of them was of an abstract angel like the a simple figure of a woman on a bathroom door sign. In addition, the figure had radiating lines around like energy rings or ripples similar to a stone contacting water.

When I arrived in Texas, I had dinner that night with friends, Teresa and Amy, who are also in the oncology clinical research field. Teresa shared with me the writing of "What Cancer Cannot Do." I was surprised for I had never heard of it. The passage was framed with a simple border that a Amy had given to Teresa after her own cancer diagnosis. Later, Teresa passed it onto another friend, Susan, who had a terminal diagnosis for stage 4 metastatic melanoma. Teresa gave it to Susan as a "loan" under the premise that it was to be returned once the friend got better. Through aggressive treatment in clinical research trials (cancer.gov & clinicaltrials.gov), she did just that to achieve the small percentage (2%) of a complete response. 7

After hearing this story, I no longer saw the angel painting as having concentric swirling rings around it, but rather blank lines waiting for the text of "What Cancer Cannot Do" to be written on them.

After I painted it, I shared it with family, friends, and co-workers. I was thinking about donating it to one of the oncology centers that I work with for their infusion room. (When someone receives chemotherapy, they will often receive it as an IV infusion which requires sitting in a lounge chair for hours at a time as they gradually receive the drug.) Most infusion rooms, have TVs or reading material, but I thought it could be enhanced by having a positive image. I am becoming more aware of the power of art imagery to heal in ways that drugs cannot do.

A co-worker at the Arizona Cancer Center (AZCC) in Tucson, Arizona noted that the clinic would potentially be interested in the original painting for their waiting room. She noted that patients often spend more time in the waiting room than anywhere else. I thought it was a wonderful suggestion. (The art work is currently under committee review for acceptance at AZCC.)

There were other requests for this painting. Upon reflection, I realized that the image was artistically interesting to paint it with multiple interpretations so that I could donate it to different cancer centers. I realized though this could mushroom into something bigger than I currently have time for. I put an offer out there with two stipulations. First, that the painting be placed in a public place for patients to see. Ideally, this is the waiting room or the infusion room. Second, that the person who wants a clinic to receive the donation, helps me with navigating the art donation process for that institution.

People were asking for prints so I passing them out. Shortly after, I worked at an oncology clinic. Their infusion room and waiting room looked like it could really use some color to brighten it. Inspired, I went back to the hotel. I wanted to create something that would easily give a little color, make the text readable, and be afforable. I first designed this mini poster (size 17" X 11") and I have this posted at both DonnaBellas at CafePress and DonnaBellas Zazzle if you are interested. (For Zazzle, please use the menu at the left to select "Inspirational" to access the images.)

The initial spirit of Amy & Teresa sharing the passage with friends inspires this angel project. There are larger images on this website that you can use to share with family & friends. As noted above, there are higher quality images also available for purchase online if you so choose.

If you would like to contact me, I can be reached at info@donnabellas.com.

Sincerely,

Laurel Latto