The work shows Karen holding a portrait of her son,Jesse,a veteran of the Afghanistan war. Jesse died by suicide,aged 32,in June 2017.
“I asked Karen if Jesse had changed when he returned from war,” says Vides. “‘Yes,’ she replied,‘He had damaged eyes,they no longer shone like they used to’.”
Vides first heard about Karen through her own partner,also a veteran. He told her how much he admired Karen for her campaigning on behalf of the veterans’ community and suggested Vides paint her. When Karen sat for Vides at her Gold Coast home it proved an unusually emotional encounter.
“I was crying,” says Vides. “I felt like an idiot because I’m not the mother who had lost a son. She showed me pictures of Jesse when he was happier and younger and he had this shine in his eyes that was so beautiful.”
In the picture,Karen addresses the viewer directly in a pose of calm dignity.
“I was trying to show the two sides,” says Vides. “I wanted to show the vulnerability and the pain that she still carries but also her strength that has led her to stand up against what went wrong.”
University of Sydney swimmers may recognise the face of former Wallaby John “Sparrow” Dowse,as you can see it on a large banner outside the uni pool and gymnasium.