Your Life Won’t Be Your Own | Artist: Lily Solheim Veteran: Cheryl A., US Navy
Your Life Won’t Be Your Own
Artist: Lily Solheim
Veteran: Cheryl A., US Navy
While speaking with Cheryl, she spoke primarily of her experiences working veterans after her time serving. Participating in homecomings, and giving time to assist in veterans pet therapy. One thing that stuck out to me during our conversation was that her mother told her that if she joined the Navy, “your life won’t be your own”. I wanted to highlight both the importance of her time serving, as well as the work she does to help other veterans. This print is a manifestation of past and present.
I’ll Follow Wherever You Go | Artist: Lily Solheim Veteran: Ana M., US Army
I’ll Follow Wherever You Go
Artist: Lily Solheim
Veteran: Ana M., US Army
Screenprint
Ana M. is a US Army Reserve veteran. She joined shortly after her husband started serving, and followed where he went--traveling to Germany and many places throughout the US with him, and eventually traveling with their two children.
During times when she was alone with no contact to him, she wrote often in a journal.
Ana also mentioned other times while working she would watch the parachutes being tested- a sight I can only imagine.
I combined these elements into segments of the screenprint.
President Tank | Artist: Matthew Presutti | Veteran: John A. US Army
President Tank
Artist: Matthew Presutti
Veteran: John A. US Army
Screenprint
John was stationed at the Strategic Communications Command in Germany during the Vietnam war. During his service in the military John acquired the nickname “President Tank” and actively served veterans as a volunteer with the VA and a purveyor of the Badger Honor Flight. John attended over 30 Badger Honor Flights in service to his brothers and sisters in arms.
Perspective of a Veteran | Artist: Akira Mabon | Veteran: Linda O., USMC
Perspective of a Veteran
Artist: Akira Mabon
Veteran: Linda O., USMC
Screen print and relief
Linda is a veteran who served in the U.S Marine Corps. Linda was a photographer in the military. This meant that she would have to capture every moment within her service. I found that fascinating. She was basically documenting history within the military. Linda was a part of history herself. She marched in the Veterans Day Parade, she was a part of the first platoon to march with men and women. She led the platoon herself. I wanted to capture such a historical part of her service. In the print, there is a silhouette of Linda taking a photograph of herself in a platoon. I wanted it to focus on what she has accomplished, and her looking back at an important part of her life. This print focuses on depicting memorable moments.
Military Mom | Artist: Maria Alfaro | Veteran: Rochelle L, US National Guard
Military Mom
Artist: Maria Alfaro
Veteran: Rochelle L, US National Guard
Laser relief and screen print
The conversations translated into a portrait of veteran Rochelle L. with her son. In this piece, I wanted to portray elements that revolved around her character and her memories. Through the conversations, some images stuck more than others, most important conversations about her son. She became an EMT during a part of her life that when she was gone. Her little boy would get excited every time he saw an EMT truck. She was deployed when her son was 11 months old. The sparrow represents to her the quote “always together” as a personal reminder she has tattooed about her son. The MRAP (truck) represent the vehicles from the base they had in Iraq, or as she likes to call them” jeep on steroids”. The boy is sitting on a tent as a representation of her life, growing up in a military base while her dad was a medic, and always wanted to be a soldier. The idea of the composition came when she spoke about the welcoming of veterans and their set up under the tents and how she got to hug her son for the first time in what seemed like forever. He is the reason she overcame a lot of obstacles. She stated that being a woman in the military is rough, but motherhood is a lot worse.
Sister Sarge | Artist: Maria Alfaro | Veteran: Linda M. US Army
Sister Sarge
Artist: Maria Alfaro
Veteran: Linda M. US Army
Woodcut Relief Print
This is a portrait of Sargent Linda M. taking flowers from her soldier's helmet. She wanted to serve the country before serving God so she served in the Vietnam War as a communications specialist for three years in the '70s. Being a nun was a big part of her life but was not required to wear the habit. The man next to her is a statue that is part of the Vietnam Memorial in Sacramento, California that she helped organize. She goes every year to visit the memorial and honor those lost in the war and she takes a helmet full of planted flowers like a pot. The floating island is a representation of a safe space, but also a state of mind that Sister Sarge has been able to assimilate and that explains her sympathetic, patient, humane and supportive individual. Through her 25 years in counseling experience, she has been helping others heal through verbal therapy.
Sheri Speaks | Artist: Ray Powers | Veteran: Sheri S., US Army
Sheri Speaks
Artist: Ray Powers
Veteran: Sheri S., US Army
Lithograph
Sheri is currently one of the highest ranking trans veterans that is vocal about her experiences. The whole time that she was serving she describes that she was not living as her “authentic self”. Now that she is retired she lobbies in congress trying to fight for her trans brothers and sisters. I look up to her because she is powerful activist who has spent her life walking tightropes to be able to directly take action on her life.
Hector Leads | Artist: Ray Powers | Veteran: Hector P. Garcia, US Army
Hector Leads
Artist: Ray Powers
Veteran: Hector P. Garcia, US Army
Lithograph
Hector was a doctor born in Mexico who migrated to the United states when he was child with his family. After joining the military in world war two he became an activist for Mexican American veterans and worked diligently with presidents JFK and Lyndon B. Jonson as an ambassador for the United States. He is the founder of the American GI Forum and a leader throughout his life.
Activist Staying Active | Artist: Akira Mabon Veteran: Kimberly S., US Air Force
Activist Staying Active
Artist: Akira Mabon
Veteran: Kimberly S., US Air Force
Relief Print
Kim is a veteran who served in the U.S Air Force. Kim is an activist who continues to speak for the LGBTQ community. It’s astonishing to hear that she is very active in supporting minorities. I wanted to include some of the activism that she does for LGBTQ community. She is a leader who speaks her mind, so I placed her onto a stage to represent her leadership. Kim was a mechanic in the military who worked with aircraft and nuclear missiles. I wanted to include some of the materials she handled. She was the only woman in her field, and as a woman she constantly had to prove herself. The two silhouettes with the cape is to represent how strong she is as a leader. She was a hero during her service and is a active hero now.
Rachelle Runs | Artist: Ray Powers | Veteran: Rachelle H., US Army
Rachelle Runs
Artist: Ray Powers
Veteran: Rachelle H., US Army
Deployed twice to Iraq, Rachelle had many experiences as a medic in the military. As a medic she was supposed to be on alert at all times. If something were to happen, it would be her that had to come up with a plan to make sure everyone was safe. It is a big responsibility. The pressure that the military creates can be overwhelming. Rachelle enjoyed running to clear her head. At the end of her second deployment she got into a horrible accident that messed up her shoulder. I wanted to illustrate an examination of that.
Untitled | Artist: Darius Agard | Veteran: Carlos M., US Army
Untitled
Artist: Darius Agard
Veteran: Carlos M., US Army
Carlos experienced lots of things going to Iraq three times, which are not all pleasant memories. However he talked very energetically about the good times he did have and all the pleasant memories he will never forget. He talked about getting enjoyment from little things with the people around him who became family. This print is based off those memories of boxing with fellow soldiers and monopoly tournaments.
Untitled | Artist: Darius Agard | Veteran: Patrick O., US Marine Corps
Untitled
Artist: Darius Agard
Veteran: Patrick O., US Marine Corps
This print is inspired by Patrick’s experience but also the way he tells his story. The background contains a collage of images from all the places he’s traveled through the military. Siting in the foreground are symbols I’ve created to sit on Patrick’s map of his own personal experience. They range from burning apple orchards and rouge grenades to meeting his wife and getting to know her through a broken down motorcycle on a military base in California.
Untitled | Artist: Darius Agard | Veteran: Malik M., US Army
Untitled
Artist: Darius Agard
Veteran: Malik M., US Army
Malik Morris’s experience as a military firefighter turned art school student is the inspiration behind this piece. He soaked up many things while serving and learning to be a firefighter. Part of his whole mentality shifted being in the military. He trained as a soldier and firefighter. Leaving the military life, he continues to use his experience of self-discipline and communication through his art and his day to day life.
American G.I. Forum | Artist: Maria Alfaro | Veteran: Print based on the history of the American G.I. Forum
American G.I. Forum
Artist: Maria Alfaro
Veteran: Print based on the history of the American G.I. Forum
Dr. Hector P Garcia was the army veteran medical doctor from WWII that formed the American GI Forum, a Latino/Hispanic organization from Corpus Christi, Texas that focuses on the civil rights of Hispanic Americans. After WWII there was a lot of discrimination and prejudice against Hispanic Americans and in particular, there was an incident in Three Rivers Texas called the Felix Longoria Affair. During this incident, a funerary home was denying burial rights to a WWII veteran Felix Longoria who was killed in the Philippines in 1945. Dr. Hector Garcia along with his members created protests that gained attention from Lyndon B Johnson that helped secured his burial rights in Arlington National Cemetery, launching the organization to become a national advocate for Latino and Hispanic civil rights and expanding its services.
Untitled | Artist: Matthew Presutti | Veteran: Mark F., US Army
Untitled
Artist: Matthew Presutti
Veteran: Mark F., US Army
Mark’s military service spans four decades from the Vietnam Era to the Iraq war. Mark has served as an infantry man stationed in Hawaii to a Milwaukee based Medic & Tank Commander. Mark continues to serve as an advocate for veterans in Milwaukee and the nation. He is the co-founder of Dryhootch Milwaukee that has been working to improve the lives of veterans and their family’s since 2006. Mark is an idea man! Constantly constructing new initiatives and opportunities for the benefit of the greater veteran community.
The Outside World | Artist: Akira Mabon Veteran: Sara P., USMC
The Outside World
Artist: Akira Mabon
Veteran: Sara P., US Marine Corps
Sara is a veteran who served in the U.S Marine Corps. Hearing her story was very inspiring when creating “The Outside World”. This print focuses on depicting a surreal world of the military life. The figure in the middle is my interpretation of Sara as a broadcaster interacting with a satellite. It’s a movable satellite that they would carry on their backs during their active duty. The satellite was a way that military sent messages when technology wasn’t so advanced. The materials surrounding the border are some of the things that they would have to carry around. When you look through the window it shows some of the memorable moments in the military that Sara experienced in Iraq. This print focuses on recapturing the symbolic moments in the military.
Untitled | Artist: Matthew Presutti | Veteran: Aaron S., US Marine Corps
Untitled
Artist: Matthew Presutti
Veteran: Aaron S., US Marine Corps
Aaron served as a Lance Corporal in the US Marine Corps stationed in Japan and was a member of an anti-terrorist security team. Aaron struggled to assimilate to military lifestyle and the psychology associated with service. After two years of serving Aaron purchased a camera and applied at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, where he is currently a student.
Guarding Waters
Artist: Lily Solheim
Veteran: Erin H., US Coast Guard
Erin was in the Coast Guard Reserves for 13 years. She spent time overlooking waters in the Great Lakes. She also spent time in school for library studies, as well as fashion design throughout the time she was serving. I wanted to highlight the amount of time spent serving, shown in the framed “13” on the left. Looking out a window on the right, a boat with a shirt as a sail floats in the distance. Her service is over, yet living in the midwest is still nearby the areas she was stationed.
