(ARA) - After the tragic events of Sept. 11, wildlife artist Rick Kelley scoured local shops in search of an American flag. Finding most stores sold out of flags and desperately wanting to show his love for the country, Rick sat down and created an emotional painting entitled, "On Freedom's Wing."
The striking image consists of a snow capped mountain landscape bearing the bold resemblance of the American flag with two bald eagles circling above the mountain.
In his 30 years of painting, Kelley says "On Freedom's Wing" was like no other painting he has completed. "It was as if someone else was holding my paint brush," he said. "I normally plan and see everything in my head before and while I paint. I had no idea where this image was going until the last brush stroke was placed."
Believing this was his way to support America through this difficult time, Rick made an immediate decision to donate 10 percent of all sales to the Liberty Disaster Relief Fund. Within a week of the painting's release, his donation was estimated at $10,000. The donation has now topped $30,000 with sales getting stronger. Kelley plans to donate proceeds through Sept. 11, 2002.
"This is one of the largest donations we've ever seen by a single individual to the Liberty Fund," said Amy Buck, communications director for the American Red Cross-Minneapolis Chapter. "It's really a heartwarming gift."
Art galleries across the country sell out of the painting quickly and often have a waiting list started. "I've been in the art business for 37 years and I've never seen such an overwhelming positive response," says Dennis Napper, owner of The What Not Shoppe in Red Wing, Minn. "I've had calls from artists all over the nation marketing their images relating to the Sept. 11 tragedy, such as an image of the second plane hitting the WTC. It's so distasteful. 'On Freedom's Wing' is pure, hopeful and strong. People also feel really good that a portion of the proceeds will go directly to help the disaster relief fund," he says.
Diane Hammes, owner of Nature's Image, a gallery in Forest Lake, Minn., says, "We've sold 200 so far and have more on order. I'm getting phone calls every hour from people wanting to know if we have the prints. I had one customer purchase the piece in memory of her father who was a WWII veteran."
Jerry Indermuehle, owner of the Eagle's Nest gallery in Estes Park, Colo., says, "When I unboxed the first shipment and saw the image for the first time, I had tears in my eyes. I've never felt such emotion for a piece of art in all my 15 years of business. We sold out almost immediately."
Once people got a glimpse of the moving piece, phone calls flooded Kelley's home office. "The calls were so constant some customers shouted with joy in being one of the lucky ones to finally have made it through one of our two existing phone lines," said Rick's wife, Shawn Kelley. Orders piled up so fast that the only way to keep up was to hire temporary help to answer the phones and ship orders from the Kelley's basement. In only a month, the print, which sells for $45 - $75, has been sent to a fulfillment center that is receiving and sending orders around the clock.
Rick Kelley plans to donate framed prints of "On Freedom's Wing" to the headquarters of the NYC Police, Fire, EMS, Port Authority and other organizations affected by the events of Sept. 11.
For more information on "On Freedom's Wing," call (800) 949-4945 or go to www.kelleyfineart.com.
