MDS CURE
(In-Between) 2019-2020
Blood cells, Digital images, acrylic media on vellum, canvas
Just three weeks after my father died, I was rejected from donating blood on October 6, 2019 due to low hemoglobin. Shortly afterwards, I was diagnosed with
high-risk MDS (myelodysplastic syndrome).
If left untreated, I would have been dead in 5 months. A bone marrow transplant is the only potential cure.
While I'm being treated at Penn Medicine, we are bringing awareness to the importance of bone marrow donation. I made these flyers and my sister ran several bone marrow drives. Please consider becoming a bone marrow donor through DKMS or Be the Match. The registry is international.
I have been visualizing the "blast" cells washing away and being replaced by healthy red blood cells, meditating, eating all the plants, exercising, drinking green juices and smoothies, and working on the endometrial hyperplasia series. I made some digital sketches just to get some ideas out of my head.
Lance Stewart was kind enough to film a video with us and he brought in over 300 new swabbers!
Clean Food Dirty Girl was so generous to work with me on sharing my story. You can read the story I wrote here. (Please excuse all the F-bombs)
We were all over the news:
February 2, 2020
WPVI-PHI (ABC) Online: NJ teacher needs bone marrow donor, community rallies to find a match
WPVI-PHI (ABC) (5 PM, 10 PM and 11:30 PM): Bone Marrow Registration Drive
KYW-PHI (CBS) (6 PM and 10 PM): Bone Marrow Registration Drive NJ
KYW-PHI (CBS) Online: South Jersey High School Teacher Hoping For Life-Saving Bone Marrow Transplant Match
WCAU-PHI (NBC) (11:30 PM): DKMS Registration Drive
WCAU-PHI (NBC) Online: Find It on 10: Today’s Links (linked to DKMS website following the segment)
February 3, 2020
KYW-PHI (CBS) (6 AM): Bone Marrow Registration in Mullica Hill
WTXF-PHI (FOX) (12 AM and 3 AM): New Jersey Teacher Searching for Bone Marrow Donor
WPVI-PHI (ABC) (6 AM): Bone Marrow Registration Drive
Social coverage
CBS Philly: Facebook Post
CBS Philly: Tweet
6 ABC Action News: Facebook Post
6 ABC Action News: Tweet
6 ABC Action News: Instagram Post
Latest DKMS article.
In Between doctor's appointments, hospitalization, life, and working on the Endometrial Hyperplasia series, I have been thinking about installations and have been making sketches.
One idea is to fill a wall with recycled bicycle tires, overlapping like cells. I imagine three separate series: white, black and red
Another is for an igloo made from my used surgical masks called:
/Pollution/Protection
/Pollution/Protection
/Pollution/Protection
I had this idea and then suddenly COVID19 happened so now it's even more universal.
Using an ancient fresco technique, I am painting images of my blood cells in various stages of the disease on custom made panels.
