I spent a cold and rainy day recently in the burned down town of Paradise. Under a small tarp, I found Shane Grammer with a box of paints and a determined look on his face. His latest mural was on a brick wall that used to be part of a Paradise resident's home.
The rain, the wind, the cold and the hostile looking burned ashes of what used to be... contrasted with the face of the peaceful, sleeping woman he was painting. As we huddled under the tarp with photographer Terence Duffy, Shane told me about seeing his friends post heartbreaking pictures of loss on Facebook. He asked one of them if he could paint the burned remains of a chimney. The friend was honored and Shane's project to bring hope with his art was born.
He's painted almost a dozen so far and is planning to return as much as he can. I love telling stories of beauty and resilience. In this one, Shane tells his own story as he paints and reflects on what he hopes his art can bring to those returning to Paradise.
Shane has been accompanied by: photographer, www.terenceduffy.com (visit his site for more pictures) and his project is being sponsored by: www.hugheyphillipsllp.com