“There’s no words,” she said Wednesday. “The Vatican is an artist’s dream. It’s the biggest honor.”
Since word spread of the Pope’s blessing of her painting, Abounassar’s life has become a blur of phone calls, events and interviews. She has been contacted by numerous religious officials inviting her to present copies of “The Savior” at multiple religious events and has been featured in articles and television interviews in California and the Middle East.
“From that day, May 12, to now, we keep moving from one event to another,” said her father, Edward. “And there are more to come.”
Today, she is giving a presentation of her experience to the city’s Arts & Culture Commission, who will commend her for the attention she has brought to the Glendale art scene.
“It’s great,” said Commissioner Steve Lee. “It shows that Glendale is in the forefront of the arts movement. My personal feeling is there are a lot of hidden artists in Glendale that we aren’t seeing right off-hand.”
While she has donated the paintings to the various religious organizations, her recent notoriety has helped her sell several copies as well. She is especially proud of a check from Gilbert Chagoury, a Lebanese millionaire and ambassador of St. Lucia to the Holy See, who purchased a copy of the painting for Carlos Slim Helu, a Mexican businessman and philanthropist who, with a reported net worth of about $35 billion, is the third richest man in the world, according to Forbes magazine.
She has also been commissioned to paint the Virgin Mary for the Mary of Nazareth Project, an international center in Nazareth that is in the planning stages.
