Geneva American Legion to display artwork by veterans
Artwork by wounded warrior, Purple Heart recipient and artist U.S. Army Sgt. Mario Lopez and other veteran artists will be featured at a Veterans Art Show from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 12, at the Geneva American Legion Post 75, 22 S. 2nd St. in Geneva. The show is free, open to the public and is co-hosted by Geneva-based Argentum Medical and the New Century Art Guild.
Motivated by the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Lopez joined the Army in 2003 and was deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan. During a mission in 2008 in Afghanistan, he was seriously injured when the vehicle he was riding in hit an improvised explosive device (IED) and it detonated. Lopez' battle buddies acted quickly, pulling him from the burning vehicle.
He sustained burns over 54% of his body and lost his right arm, vision in his right eye and four fingers on his left hand. Lopez underwent multiple skin grafts and surgeries to reconstruct his face, left hand, and right foot.
During his recovery, Lopez, who was awarded the Purple Heart, turned to painting as part of his healing. After losing his dominant right arm, he thought he would never paint again. However, in July 2011, he picked up a paintbrush with his left hand, started making strokes across the canvas, and has not stopped since. His paintings have been shown in art galleries across the United States.
In August, Lopez visited the Geneva headquarters of Argentum Medical to unveil and dedicate a painting to the company, the creators of Silverlon, which helped save him. Originally developed for military combat burn and blast injuries, Silverlon antimicrobial technology is now used throughout the United States military and in civilian operating rooms and hospitals around the world.
The painting is a stylized image of the American flag on canvas and will hang at Argentum. During that visit and dedication ceremony, Lopez met with U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, a member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
New Century Art Guild, Inc., is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit corporation. For details, visit newcenturyartguild.org.