Resilience: Artwork and Inspiration
The 23rd International Aids (Virtual) Conference commissioned an artwork series entitled “Profiles in Resilience“, which you can see on their website. This piece in particular stood out for me, both because of the image and the quote from Erika Castellanos, Director of Programmes at Global Action for Trans Equality (GATE):
“For me, resilience is not only being strong, but also to survive in your moments of weakness. I don’t always have to be strong. I also need to cry. I also need to feel frustrated. And I also need to feel anger. But resiliency in my is overcoming those moments. So I cry then I wipe my tears and go on. I get angry, I scream, take my frustration and go on. For me, that’s resilience.”
Pushing Through, Pushing Forward
by Liam O’Donnell
[Image Description: An illustration of a female figure moving from left to right, with various waves of blue and purple behind her. The text in the photo is quoted before the image.]
“The passage by Erika Castellanos about allowing herself to feel a range of emotions fully and deeply during a difficult experience embodies power and courage. I wanted to capture the resilience needed to acknowledge those feelings, harness them, and move forward with that energy at your back.” – Liam O’Donnell.
Liam O’Donnell (@odoillustration) is an illustrator and designer from Oakland, now based in Brooklyn, New York. He works in entertainment advertising designing posters for Broadway shows and freelances as an editorial illustrator for clients like ESPN and BuzzFeed. Liam holds an MFA from the Illustration as Visual Essay program at the School of Visual Arts.
With thanks to the San Francisco Chronicle for the original print article.
