Gerri Foster, administrative support associate at the Gill Heart & Vascular Institute, created a series of artwork entitled “Vintage Series: A Celebration of Diversity and Creativity” for the UK Arts in HealthCare program.
“My story began with a want for new African American figures in my home,” Foster said. “I have a canvas picture at home that has two ladies on it, one a water-bearer and the other carrying straw. While studying the picture, I thought to myself, ‘Their bodies are in the shape of a bottle. I wonder if I could create those ladies.’ I went and got a water bottle and some newspaper, and that’s when the creativity started. Papier-mâché techniques allowed the hidden forms to reveal themselves.”
With an environmentally conscious mindset, Foster creates art using repurposed materials.
“It gives me great pleasure to know that with the creation of each ‘Beauty Without A Face’ figure is one less plastic bottle and bundle of newspaper in our landfills,” she said. “My work has proven to be a vehicle for translating my inner vision of fashion design and beauty into reality, while also upcycling materials that would eventually wind up in our landfills.”
In addition to being an expression of her creativity and appreciation for fashion, Foster’s work is a message of celebrating diversity. “It tells a personal story of ethnically and culturally diverse beauty of the past and present,” she said.
Foster’s work is on display at Chandler Hospital, Pavilion A, across from the Donate Life Wall.
