In 1985, Phyllis Miranker lost a five year fight with breast cancer.
She left behind many good friends, never met her grandchildren and Willard was never the same again.  As we are near the actual anniversary of her passing, it seems only fitting that I spend some time on paintings my father made of her.

Here is the earliest I could find.  It is a pencil sketch from around 1958.  Phyllis is 25 and already had 2 children by this time. 

Sketch of Phyllis1958, 10 x 8   Phyllis, 1957

The  photo to the right of the sketch is also from 1958.  I think the hair-cut, called a Flip-Back Pixie, was popular  (Audrey Hepburn had short hair in this era).  I picked this photo as it gives a nice comparison to the sketch; however, it is not very representative of what she looked like at the time.  This one is a bit closer:

Phyllis, 1958

Now you know where I got my fabulously good looks.  My brothers were not so fortunate.  

1958 was 7 years before my time.  This photo from about 20 years later is closer to the mother I knew.

Phyllis, 1975

I was in high school, living at home when my mother was first diagnosed.  The paintings over the time period of surgery and chemotherapy were decidedly apprehensive:

Willard, Ailing Phyllis, Ferry1981, 30 x 40

Phyllis in Wingback Chair1982, 32 x 42

The next one Will titled "Phyllis in Resignation".  Only as an adult can I look back and imagine what the outlook was like.  In "Phyllis in Resignation", she is wearing a head scarf which she wore to cover her hair loss from the chemotherapy.  

In 1982-84, there was still some hope and occasional levity.  My favorite recollection is of coming downstairs into the kitchen late one night, after my bed time, because there was a lot of commotion.  I entered a kitchen filled with a fragrant smoke I had never smelled, my mother sitting and giggling uncontrollably on a stool, and my father desperately raiding the refrigerator looking for snacks.  Yes, marijuana does work to counteract the nausea from chemo. My father was just joining in, apparently, for moral support!  I promise, this was not a common sight in the Miranker home.

Phyllis in Resignation1984, 34 x 28

In 1985, Will made two paintings whose symbolism regarding Phyllis' impending departure is obvious.

Self-portrait with Row of Phyllis1985, 40 x 32

This second one with wispy faces in the blue field upper right and mauve field lower left is much more tortured.  Strangely, the couple bears no resemblance to Willard and Phyllis, BUT, the wispy faces in the lower left field are clearly self portraits.

Phyllis Dissolving1985, 54 x 46

Six years after her passing, Will painted a series of similarly themed works.  I had seen one of these before and was even asked what I thought of it.  As was usual with my father, he never offered (and I never felt comfortable to ask) for explanations of the subject.  It is only recently, that I realized these are all about my mother and his grief.  The giveaway is the fact that my father painted numerous nude women, always with two  breasts, or both breasts obscured.  In these paintings, all painted over a single one year period, one figure only ever has one breast.  Given other aspects of the subject matter, I can only conclude this is my mother after her mastectomy.  

These first two have a reprise of the playing cards I've commented upon before.

Punt at Sea1991, 42 x 50

I named the one above "Punt at Sea", but I wonder if a river Styx reference is somehow appropriate?  

Cards and Circus1991, 42 x 50

I am totally stumped as to the significance of the covering of her head.  Why did Will paint her head wrapped in bandages? Or are they angel feathers? And in this next one, why Christian halo iconography? 

Circus Angel1991, 42 x 50

The final painting in the series: An conflicted effort to move on.

Blue Car Departure1992, 50 x 42