Ahipara mouth painter Kevin Griffiths was inspired by Anzac Day for his latest painting ‘Sunset Over the Bay’. Here he’s painting an earlier work ‘Koi Fish’.
Ahipara mouth painter Kevin Griffiths was inspired by Anzac Day for his latest painting ‘Sunset Over the Bay’. Here he’s painting an earlier work ‘Koi Fish’.
This year he took his personal connection to Anzac Day as the inspiration for his latest painting, entitled Sunset Over the Bay, which features poppies in the foreground thatare a homage to Anzac Day.
The painting, which Griffiths painted using a brush in his mouth after being left disabled as a child, is featured on a greeting card which is among the products being sold throughout Australia and New Zealand by the Mouth and Foot Paintings Artists (MFPA), an international art group which has 850 members in 84 countries throughout the world.
“I’ve always loved poppies because of the association with Anzac Day, and enjoy painting them. My connection to Anzac Day being my birthday is also strong, but as well as that, I feel inspired by the Anzac legend. I enjoy visiting all types of gardens and love to take photos of different plants, as nature shows incredible colours and shapes in a variety of plants and flowers,” he said.
The selection of the pictures for the products for the mid-year range is made by a panel of European experts. The three New Zealand artists have “punched above their weight” to be successful against artists from so many countries.
Griffiths has been mouth painting for more than 25 years after he broke his neck and lost the use of his hands in a swimming accident at age 13. Following his accident, he continued his education and became interested in various forms of art, which inspired him to travel extensively throughout the world.
In 1991 he was awarded the Bruce Hopkins Memorial Award, a competition that started more than 20 years ago to commemorate Bruce Hopkins’ contribution to the MFPA and artists with disabilities throughout New Zealand.
Since that time, Griffiths has received the coveted prize four times. He became an MFPA Student Member in 1992 and an Associate Member in 2001.
Ahipara mouth painter Kevin Griffiths’ latest work ‘Sunset Over the Bay’, which features poppies in the foreground that are a homage to Anzac Day - which is also his birthday
The Mouth and Foot Painting Artists gain their income through the sale of products illustrated with their paintings and although this started with Christmas cards, today it includes a wide list of products ranging from special occasion cards, jigsaws, tea sets, address books, calendars, Christmas serviettes and placemats, gift tags and wrapping paper.
Founded in 1956 by a group of European artists, the MFPA is a self-help organisation that gives people with disabilities the opportunity to fulfil their creative ambitions while still maintaining financial independence by selectively selling their artworks.
The MFPA was established in New Zealand in 1961 and currently has 25 members around the country. To become a student member an artist must qualify by painting using a brush held in either their mouth or foot, having lost the use of their hands through an illness or accident. Student members receive scholarships for art supplies and tuition.
For more information, including how to buy the artworks, visit mfpa.co.nz
