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The project is a series of portraits of people who have gone on this journey. Each portrait is accompanied by words chosen by the person pictured. Posthumous portraits are included in this group and for these portraits the families have chosen the words which accompany the painting.
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In 2005, as he watched the news of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Matthew Mitchell, a painter in Amherst, MA, felt disconnected and feared that the memories of the soldiers, like the news, would soon fade.
“The big danger that we have is that we can forget about war.”
He decided to do something about it. His project, 100 Faces of War Experience, is exactly that: he will paint the portraits of 100 veterans and each portrait will be accompanied by the personal statements of the soldier. So far Mr. Mitchell has completed 38 of the 100 portraits, and this project has turned into something that is a lot more powerful than he has anticipated.
Currently the portrait of Sgt. Rick Yarosh is in the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. Sgt. Yarosh suffered severe injury when his vehicle was hit by an IED with 60% of his body burned, including his whole face. Looking at his face, you would be surprised to hear him speak because he sounds upbeat and positive and proud.
I’m lucky and blessed to be here, I’m able to share my story with others.
That day started the same as every other day, but that day has never ended.
You could learn more about this from NPR’s program on the 100 Faces of War Experience project, Washington Post’s article on Sgt. Yarosh and his portrait, or this YouTube video from the U.S. Army.
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