Life Goes On
- Pierce Brosnan shares a peek into his at-home art studio and the piece he’s making for his wife’s anniversary present.
- The actor lost his first wife in 1991 and daughter in 2013 to ovarian cancer.
- After his first wife’s passing, Brosnan started painting to cope with his grief.
Brosnan turned to art after losing his first wife, Cassandra, to ovarian cancer in 1991, and he continues to embrace his artistic side to the benefit of the loved ones around him. His most recent project is a sweet and beautiful painting for his current wife Keely, who he’s been married to for 19 years. The former James Bond actor shares a peek into his at-home art studio, and gives everyone a sneak peek of the present he’s giving to Keely for their 20th wedding anniversary on September 25th. The artwork is in honor of the couple’s close friend and fellow actor Jay Benedict, who passed away from COVID-19 in April.
Read MoreBrosnan stayed right by his first wife Cassandra’s side while she battled ovarian cancer for four years, and eventually succumbed to the disease at 43-years-old. In 2013, Brosnan’s daughter Charlotte also passed away from ovarian cancer at 42. This particular diagnosis has made a huge impact on their family, seeing as Cassandra’s mother also died due to ovarian cancer. Since their passings, Brosnan has become an advocate for raising awareness about the diagnosis, and his story has inspired many.
Brosnan and his wife Keely met in 1994, and the actor has said she’s helped him heal from heartbreak. Having been together for 26 years, and married for nearly 20, Brosnan is proof that even though losing loved ones is always difficult, it’s possible to move forward.
The Power of Art Therapy During & After Cancer
During cancer, it’s important to cope with the variety of emotions they’re feeling at the hands of a diagnosis, which can include anxiety, stress, anger, hopelessness, and more. While some survivors have said that they turned to support groups to share their journey, others have embraced their creative side.
Related: How I Made It Through Cancer: Painting & Dreaming
HPV-linked throat cancer survivor Michael Rees was already was a already sculptor before his diagnosis, but his creative side helped him turn the disease into a new experience. While facing cancer, Michael tells SurvivorNet that he was able to open parts of his mind that he wasn’t in tune with, because it gave him a new perspective on life. Even during painful migraines, Rees examined his head and turned it into a one-of-a-kind artistic masterpiece.
Throat cancer survivor and sculptor, Michael Rees, turned his cancer journey into art
“I had the sense from the very beginning that this would be some kind of adventure, you know, that it would be an adventure of knowledge, of experience, that it might open up parts of me that were closed, at this point,” Michael says. “I’m an artist, and so I find seeing things in your mind to be a very interesting phenomena.”
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