Cancer may have taken away Wall artist, but not her paintings or the love of her husband

Jerry Carino, Asbury Park Press

In the 1990s, longtime Wall resident Lorraine Madsen took up painting in retirement and produced impressive works depicting seascapes, historic buildings and the like.

Then, around 2000, she was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer. The resulting chemotherapy inflicted nerve damage to her hands that left her unable to continue painting with precision.

“She couldn’t feel anything in her hands and her feet,” husband Harry Madsen recalled. “Not being able to paint, Lorraine was in a funk.”

Then a friend convinced her to take a class in abstract painting, and it changed everything.

“It opened doors for her, and her creativity,” Harry said.

Harry Madsen stands in front of a display of artwork by his late wife Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.
Harry Madsen stands in front of a display of artwork by his late wife Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.

Lorraine not only resumed painting; she long outlived doctors’ prognoses for her life expectancy — churning out a trove of abstract works in the process — before her death three years ago. Dozens of those works are now on display throughout the Belmar Arts Council, the entirety of which is devoted to her paintings in a weeklong exhibit that runs through Saturday.

“It chokes me up, to be very honest,” Harry Madsen said Wednesday at the Council, a three-room building on River Road. “I’m not a crier or an emotional person, but this is touching.”

'A new lease on life'

A serendipitous encounter set the exhibit in motion. Harry Madsen, a retired history teacher and longtime baseball and basketball coach at Wall High School, recently met fellow Wall resident Kathleen Wilhelm while Wilhelm was walking her dog. The conversation turned to Lorraine’s paintings, which lined Harry’s garage.

Wilhelm’s son, Robert Testa, plays in a band that regularly performs at the Belmar Arts Council. After meeting Harry and viewing the paintings, Testa knew they deserved a public showing. The amazing story behind the works added poignancy and allure.

“When Lorraine finally turned a corner physically (from cancer treatment) her friend dragged her out to an abstract class and this huge body of work just exploded from her,” Testa said. “She was given five years to live at most and she lived another 21 years. We like to think art played a part in that.”

Brianna Montalto and Robert Testa stand before a display of artwork by deceased artist Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.
Brianna Montalto and Robert Testa stand before a display of artwork by deceased artist Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.

Harry agrees.

“She fell in love with (abstract painting), and it gave her a new lease on life,” he said.

Some of Lorraine’s paintings debuted at the Belmar Arts Council last month as part of a larger exhibit called “Embracing Freedom.” She’ll also have space at an upcoming exhibit there, titled “Surf,” which will run from Aug. 3 to Sept. 6.

“Her story is touching, to say the least,” Belmar Arts Council chair Wendy Green said. “To be able to honor a past member here and a person in our community is a great honor; to be able to make space for her, and her gift to life has been just amazing.”

Green added, “The most touching part of all this, to me, is I can only hope to have someone love me half as much as Harry has expressed for Lorraine.”

Display of artwork by deceased artist Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.
Display of artwork by deceased artist Lorraine Madsen, who continued painting while battling cancer in spite of nerve damage to her hands from the chemo treatment. The display is at the Belmar Arts Council.

A goal of inspiring

A heartwarming subplot to all this is the bond that’s developed between Harry Madsen and Wilhelm, Testa, and Testa’s girlfriend Brianna Montalto.

“You can’t have better friends,” Harry said. “They say I’m part of the family. We’re fortunate to live in an area where everybody is looking out for one another.”

To that end, Testa is endeavoring to make Lorraine’s paintings available for purchase beyond the exhibits.

“He’s not going to be able to steward these works forever,” Testa said of Harry. “So to get these paintings into homes where folks are going to appreciate the paintings and the story is really the primary goal.”

As Montalto put it, “That freedom and passion that was invigorated when she started doing this, we want to pass it on to inspire other people.”

Anyone interesting in following up can email Robert Testa at testadifongo@gmail.com.

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Belmar art show keeps alive painting legacy of late Wall artist

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