ASBESTOS WAR

Medium & Technique:

“Schlossing” – No. 75 mm house paintbrush, fingers, snap-dry layers, positional paint application.

Inspiration & Meaning:
D

“Asbestos War” is my subconscious vision of the Gaza conflict — destruction, death of children, women, and civilians caused by military action. This work highlights not only the immediate suffering of war but also the hidden, long-term consequences: decades of slow death and illness from asbestos dust released into the air by the collapse of bombed hospitals and buildings.

This dust spreads silently — carried by wind, trampled by vehicles — affecting everyone: civilians, children, rescuers, United Nations helpers, soldiers, and even the troops themselves. The tragedy extends beyond the war itself, with asbestos-related diseases claiming more lives than the conflict. Even newborns and young children breathe in these deadly particles, inheriting a legacy of suffering.

In my vision, a 2,000-year-old Roman stone stairway rises upward, untouched by destruction. It symbolizes both endurance and fragility — resembling a spinal column supporting the Death Mask of Asbestos. Around it, skulls of victims burn on the hot desert sands and within the rubble. The hospital in Gaza, pierced by rockets, appears with hollow, flaming holes — resembling skull eye sockets. From the mask’s eyes and mouth, blood flows, staining the ancient stairway.

This painting embodies my heart and soul. It is deeply personal: I am myself an asbestos victim in Australia, fighting my own private war against this invisible enemy and its diseases.

Yet, amidst despair, there is also hope. The Roman stairway, like a vertebrae leading to the heavens, suggests that the souls of the victims may rise and rest in eternal peace.