AustLit

'Stan Hopewell is the powerful and life-affirming story of a man compelled to paint not by his passion for art, but by an inherent creative spirit.

'When war veteran Stan Hopewell’s beloved wife Joyce became seriously ill, he turned to art. Though he had never painted in his life, art became his means of expressing his love for Joyce, conveying his belief in the power of God, dealing with hardship, and celebrating the life that he and Joyce had shared.

'The urge toward creative expression was so surprising and the results so remarkable that he assumed his ‘talent’ came from God. This spiritual relationship guided him through the hardships and challenges of life, and led to using his extraordinary capacity to give potent visual form to all manner of events and emotions. His life story acts as a parallel text to the works, illustrating and informing each complex painting.

'Ted Snell moves from the story of one man to the creative journeys of self-taught artists and their ineffable drive to create. Stan Hopewell: Facing the Stars documents that brief moment of creative focus and energy that turns ordinary people into artists.' (Publisher's blurb)