Social Connections: Local artists paint frontline workers

Four women from the Gilbert Art League are joining a worldwide movement to paint portraits of frontline workers who are directly fighting COVID-19. Medical frontline workers can contact artists through the hashtag #portraitsforusheroes on social media.

Jane Bradley, a painter with the Gilbert Art League, said the movement began when a man “put out a text on his Instagram and said ‘who would be interested in having their portrait painted?’ He got a whole lot of responses, so he started passing them off to other artists and it became a real movement.”

The artists say painting is their way of showing support to frontline workers.

Bradley said, “It makes me feel like I have accomplished something when you feel kind of useless right now, compared to the people who are out there working. This is something that I think all of us can do.”

The four artists have made ten portraits for frontline workers across the U.S.

Glenda Neiman, another painter with the Gilbert Art League, says “When I watched television I saw the doctors leave the hospital and everybody’s clapping for them. I knew I wanted to do something, and this is my clap, that’s the best way to put it to honor them because they are risking themselves and their families to do this work.”

Medical frontline workers can contact artists through #portraitsforusheroes on social media.