HEATH ROSSELLI

Inspired by the situation in Ukraine, the proceeds of this painting and the sale of mounted prints will be donated to the charity Suffolk Refugee Support. The piece, called ‘Hold My Hand’, depicts a Ukrainian mother and child, walking through a lonely landscape of yellow oilseed rape and blue flax fields. Symbolic dark clouds are above them as they walk towards a small chink of blue sky breaking through. Spikey red flowers behind them represent the blood of the soldiers, husbands and fathers, left behind to fight for their country.

The painting was inspired by hearing and reading the stories of Ukrainian people coming over to the UK with nothing but what they could carry.  I felt driven to try and capture the feeling of a young mother with her small child stepping bravely into the unknown, leaving behind loved ones.

I hope the proceeds from the sale of the painting will go to buy the much-needed supplies and necessities for refugees in Suffolk who find themselves with little or no money for the necessities that the rest of us take for granted, particularly at this cold time of the year, when keeping warm is proving so difficult with the ever-increasing costs of food and heat. I play a part in our local Diocese as an Elder in Worlington and the difficult issues that I paint give my work its vital purpose, are faith driven and are a part of who I am as a Christian.

Martin Simmonds, Fundraising & Communications Officer at Suffolk Refugee Support said, “More people than ever before have been forced from their homes by conflict and persecution. We see this reflected in the increased numbers of people seeking safety in our corner of the world, from Ukraine and elsewhere, often arriving with little or nothing. We have also seen a tremendous outpouring of support and compassion from the people of Suffolk, and we are very grateful that this powerful painting is being auctioned to raise vital funds for our work and awareness of refugee experiences. As winter sets in, it will help us to meet the most urgent needs of those we work with."

The painting will be available to view in St Edmundsbury Cathedral until 10th January and those interested in bidding are encouraged to come and see the painting in person. Very Reverend Joe Hawes, Dean of St Edmundsbury Cathedral, says, “We’re delighted to showcase Heath’s beautiful painting in the Cathedral and encourage art lovers in the region to make a bid for such a great cause.”

To find out more about the project and make a bid, visit: https://www.jumblebee.co.uk/holdmyhand

“Dr J” began in-between commissions in May 2020 and continued to evolve through until January 2021. To begin with the idea was that it should be a record of what we could then see was a terrible situation developing in the hospitals. I found a senior consultant at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, Dr. Andrew Johnston, a consultant anaesthetist in the Covid ICU wards. He agreed to collaborate with me to produce a painting primarily as a piece of history for future generations.

My idea was to create a painting from the perspective of a patient on a ventilator, with Dr. Johnston looking directly into the viewer’s eyes, just before he administers the anaesthetic and places the patient – the viewer – on the ventilator. All the patient might see in the background of the ward is visible; in the distance another patient on a ventilator and nurses going about their work. The digital clock on the wall reading 20 minutes past midnight indicates the 24/7 dedication of hospital staff.

My paintings tend to take on a mind of their own and as the pandemic evolved along with the painting, I started to pick up the physical and emotional toll it was taking on the medical staff. Talking to Dr. Johnston about the despair and desperation of some of the staff, this crept its way into the painting via the doctor’s eyes, where there is the sense of sadness and exhaustion that he described. This painting was taking on a new message about the emotional burden that frontline staff in the hospitals are carrying.

 I hooked up with a charitable initiative called Our Frontline, which provides round the clock mental health and bereavement support to all frontline workers across the UK by text, call and online. It is a free and confidential service, launched in April 2020, by Samaritans, Mind Shout, Hospice UK and The Royal Foundation. They are using the image, together with Dr. Johnston’s story, to promote their message and urge more frontline workers to reflect on their experiences and reach out for support if they need it. The painting will travel to hospitals around the country to be exhibited in staff facing areas, starting with Addenbrooke’s, where it currently hangs.

The painting featured in several national and local new articles...

Radio Suffolk Interview

BBC News Article

ITV News Article

Article on Australian Broadcast News

BBC Interview with Dr Johnson

An annual exhibition of students' work held in All Saints' Church Worlington Suffolk.

The exhibition was held on weekend of the 26th and 27th June and was a great success. It was very well attended and the artists sold over £2,000 worth of paintings and raised some £1,700 for All Saint's Church.

The annual exhibition of students' work.

Annual exhibition of the Worlington Movement held at the Edmund gallery in Bury St Edmunds Suffolk.

Held in Commemoration of the life and work of Sir James Thornhill (1675 - 1734), an English painter of historical subjects, in the Italian baroque tradition. In 1696 he completed his apprenticeship and in March 1704 became a Freeman of the Painter-Stainers' Company of London.

In June 1718 George I made him court painter, and in March 1720 Serjeant Painter. In the same year, he was master of the Painters' Company and in 1723 fellow of the Royal Society. 

During a wonderful buffet dinner, several demonstrations of the decorative arts took place around the Hall. I was working on my commission of a large triptych for Help for Heroes, there were also demonstrations of trompe l'Oeil, glasswork, set design and coach painting. I was painting an injured soldier, 19 year old Private Dave Tatlock, who despite a serious spinal injury, made his way from Manchester to London to be painted into the picture, and thus raise awareness for the Charity.

Art in the City Painters Fine Art Society Annual Exhibition Held from 11th – 14th October 2009, at Painters Hall, in the City.

A Painting Demonstration - working at a later stage of the Help for Heroes triptych. At the champagne reception marking the opening of the exhibition, I had Sergeant Tony Martin from Headley Court, to paint him into the foreground of the central panel of the painting. I continued to work on the painting each evening throughout the exhibition, again raising much needed awareness for Help for Heroes

This painting was on show in The Louvre at the International Breast Cancer Conference 2009, on 31st January - 2nd February, and held up well against its fellow paintings by Raphael, Rubens and Rembrandt, which portrayed images of breast cancer through the centuries.

Evelyn and I both felt so privileged to be a part of this Symposium, and were fascinated listening to the speakers and all they had to say. We learned so much about the whole subject and the great steps forward that have been made in research and development of cancer drugs and surgery, as well as the history. This is particularly good for me, as often I get asked a bit about these things. People assume I know a lot more about the subject than I do, simply because of the painting! Since the painting has received so much publicity, it seems Evelyn herself has become an icon in the movement against breast cancer, something she could never have imagined happening when we first set out to create this painting.

The faculty organising the conference said the painting served as a reminder to all 1000 oncologists present, from 61 countries around the world, that it is the patients that are the reason why anyone should ever "do" breast oncology; the most important part of the whole equation. Many attendees came to stand next to the painting to have their picture taken, and Evelyn and I were assured that its presence and ours were inspirational to the conference. Evelyn has undoubtedly become the positive image of breast cancer treatment in the 20th/21st century.