LONDON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Just two years ago, George Jackson’s life was filled with loneliness.
She was depressed and didn’t know where to turn for help.
Until that help appeared out of thin air, something Jackson saw as a sign from God.
“Had to start staying in the house all the time. Anxiety starts to take over a little bit,” Jackson said. “I had prayed about it the night before, and then my son the next day had been in the attic and brought me down canvases and brushes that we didn’t know were there, and they were all brand new. I was like, ‘alright Lord, I got this.’”
Jackson immediately hit a different gear.
Her anxious feelings melted away, and she also started cranking out canvases like clockwork.
In the two years since she started, she’s painted more than 2,200 pieces.
It’s quite the portfolio for such a new artist.
On top of a unique challenge, she faces in a visual medium.
George is legally blind.
“I lost my sight in this eye about ten years ago. I can’t see when I’m painting most of the time,” Jackson said. “I kind of paint in the dark because if my eyesight gets any worse, then I won’t be dependent on that light. I can actually do it by what I remember.”
That handicap is not holding Jackson back.
She has quite literally painted herself down a new path in life.
One that has allowed her to spread her new vision with other artists nationwide.
Including Roxy Haltom, who lives in Louisiana.
“She’s very sharing and very giving and also very encouraging. She makes me feel like I’m a superstar,” Haltom said.
Haltom is one of several people Jackson connected with after starting the Painting New Beginnings group on Facebook.
The goal was to create a positive space for creatives to share their work, which Jackson thought was lacking online.
“Most of these art groups on Facebook are so mean to artists. Everybody’s vision is different, so I think they should all be treated as beautiful,” Jackson said.
It’s an entirely different picture looking and listening to Jackson today compared to two years ago.
Everything goes back to what she felt was a message of faith to point her in the right direction.
“It’s just brought so much joy in my life. It’s really been a blessing. I couldn’t ask for something any better,” Jackson said.
Jackson often auctioned off her work to organizations and charities.
She also painted a canvas for the family of Logan Medlock, the London Police officer killed in a car crash last year.
