From the NJN Archives...
New Jersey's Artists React

The Firefighters Commemorative

Sarah Yuster
Staten Island, NY
(select any picture below to see a larger version)

A full length, iconic portrait of a firefighter exhibited alongside a painting of the amputated skyline. A painting of the unscathed horizon done years earlier completes the statement.

September 11th was quixotically fortunate for me. My brother survived
the strike on the WTC.

His wife and I watched the towers burn and collapse over and over on the television news that morning. We could barely breathe, cry, or dare to hope as we envisioned Jared’s last moments, anonymously repeated in slow motion for all to see.

Our relief and gratitude upon finally hearing from him was subdued by the surrounding anguish. Jared’s reportage of the defining minutes of evacuation and rescue provided an overwhelming image that would endure.

Jared's account: “As we made our way down the smoke filled stairwells, I could smell the burning jet fuel . The firefighters kept everyone calm, guiding and assuring us that we would be fine. I tried to remember the face of each one as he passed us going up; they had to know they might never come down, even if you couldn’t see it in their eyes.... I just felt that someone should look at their faces because it might be the last time anyone did.”

Alternately constrained and rent by grief, disbelief, fear, rage and soaring empathy for the victims and their loved ones, none of us knew where to go. One tangible location, however, for many was the hilltop on Victory Boulevard with Staten Island’s unique view of the skyline. People gathered there for days after the 11th, to look, understand, and verify. I've long felt an unreasonable propriety for that vista, having labored it on canvas in my late twenties, more than fifteen years ago.

The power of a painting, now only an abstract truth, the reality of the
present and my brother’s resonating words spurred me to this project.
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The firefighter is a living metaphor. Their tenet is one that holds human
life at the highest value. While most of society is in agreement, the
majority of us would prefer to avoid situations where it would be necessary to physically act upon this belief. Vowing to make their life’s work a daily exposure to this manifesto is exactly what the firefighter embraces and what their families must bear.

I’m hopeful that the visual power of these pictures will translate into a
visceral moment for the viewer, causing a temporary shift in the
consciousness of their routine. Such a reminder can spur pain,
catharsis, respect and reflection to internalize or share.

These paintings are intended as both a personal and communal experience to thank, honor and grieve for these people who would have died in an attempt to save any one of us.