Oprah, Mick Jagger, even Vogue - these are some of the big names all after paintings by a woman who stumbled upon her love for art.
Radiation for cancer isolated Janet McGreal. That was life changing.
Now her passion is passed on through canvas and charity.
Each brushstroke has a meaning, a purpose, starting with the life history of McGreal.
"In one quick second, I was told my life would never be the same," she said.
McGreal used to be in corporate America, until she fought thyroid cancer. Doctors isolated her for days for radiation.
"I called my mother and she stayed on the phone with me all night. She's amazing. She said 'I need you to close your eyes and start talking about all of the people you love in your life and that are here for you. Say their names and tell me about them.' So that is what I did, all night," she said.
In that moment, she realized painting is her passion. She left corporate America.
"Without any pre-conceived ideas, I took a piece of wood and I did a squiggly... These are all the people who make up my life. I cut into the canvass and I do that for a reason. I want this to be as deeply ingrained as possible. I believe that is what gets you through every day," she said.
McGreal painted one piece in honor of her friend who died from cancer.
"It's a true labor of love, more than anything else I've done before," she said.
Now she's in the process of donating it to the cancer ward at Children's Medical Center of Dallas.
"When I look back at today, tomorrow, did I do what I wanted to do?" she asks herself.
As long as the answer is yes, McGreal says her life feels like a masterpiece.
E-mail: sslater@wfaa.com
