ARTIST STATEMENT

The graphite renderings in this series are of seven Archangels who were chosen based on their personages. I have used the attributes of these heavenly beings to provide a way to present and preserve some of my Mother’s most frequently used adages.

My inspiration for this project originated during a conversation with my brother Terry. To make a point on a subject we were discussing, I added a comment, something like, “As our Mother used to say, ‘Blood is thicker than water.’” Terry’s unexpected response caught me off guard when he said, “I wish I could remember some of Mom’s sayings.” It was my impression that we, as siblings, had experienced Mom’s often-repeated idioms the same, but obviously I was mistaken.

After thinking about Terry’s comment, I decided to start a list of Mom’s expressions, not knowing how many I could remember. Amazingly, I collected dozens of her “words of wisdom,” even though it took me over two years to do so.

A combination of these synchronistic events resulted in the creation of all this book contains. 

Okie Anderson