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"The Day I Killed My Father"
By Alex Pardee.
Limited Edition Of 200.
17" x 22" Printed with Archival Inks on Acid Free Velvet Cotton Rag.
Each print is hand signed and numbered by Alex Pardee.
This was originally created for an art show with Harley Davidson.
The theme of the art show where this painting was displayed was "rebellion", so I decided to create a painting based around a really sad journal page that I found out by the creek near my studio.
Here is what was written in the journal:
"October 24, 1987
I never really wanted to write anything in here except stories about dragons and Cyclopses and stuff before. But today is different
After I was born my mom produced an overabundance of white blood cells in her body because of a disease. So whenever she would try to eat, the blood cells would think that the food was an enemy, and they would attack the food by making her vomit it up. By the time I was 4, Mom weighed 79 pounds and all she could eat was rice, bananas, and plums. Dad never believed she was sick. He used to say it was cause of guilt for her cheating on him before I was born. He said she felt bad cause she knew in her heart that he wasnt my real Dad. But Mom never cheated, and Dad was really my Dad. Either way, Dads always hated me. So when Mom starved to death when I was 9, Dad started being extra mean to me.
He made me mow the lawn every day, which wasnt that bad, except he made me bite down on a piece of wood to keep my muscles tight while I did it so that I would get my man-strength. But all it did was cut my mouth with splinters. He hit me a lot. Mostly when I would talk about Mom, or when I would beg to sleep inside cause it was too cold in the shed. And he would make me shoot things too. Ghead, you point that rifle at them bunnies and you pull that trigger to get some ****in hair on that little girl chest a yours! So I did it. Bunnies, squirrels, even the occasional cat that hopped our fence just because it was OUR property, he said. And it wasnt even for food. Dad was a vegetarian.
My childhood was disgusting.
But after 13 years, I finally rebelled.
Today was the day that I killed my father.
October 25, 1987
I slept through the night. And for the first time in my life, I remembered my dreams.
I dreamt that my life is finally
going to be beautiful."
From the Zerofriends website.