Photo provided Local artist Leoma Lovegrove demonstrates her concern for wildlife suffering from the gulf oil spill.

Anyone who has seen the artwork of Leoma Lovegrove knows that her canvasses are full of vibrant colors. But during a visit to The Bridge Youth Center in Fort Myers recently, something changed.

As Lovegrove painted a fish on an oversize canvas, she suddenly asked Bridge Executive Director Melissa Terry if she had any black paint. Terry hauled out a five-gallon bucket. Lovegrove has never used black paint before and had shared that with the teens during her closing statement to them during the Downtown Art Walk.

After praying with the youth about the oil spill and its effects on wildlife, she used the black paint to finish the art.

“It was like dipping my hands into a bucket of oil,” Lovegrove said. “I cried as I finished the art, because all I could envision were the images I had seen earlier that day on the news and in the newspapers of the oil drenched fish, dolphins, and birds.”

She considers it her best work to date. The painting, valued at $120,000, will remain on display at the The Bridge Youth Center located at 2336 Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers, and will be featured for sale on www.leomalovegrove.com

Proceeds will go to The Bridge to enable it to continue its mission of working with local youth.