By Martha Lueders
Murphy News Service

A superhero should be easy to spot with the colorful tights and capes they wear, but in real life superheroes may seem ordinary without the Hollywood glamour.

So that’s where Barbara Porwit comes in. The Twin Cities artist has created a project where she paints portraits of breast cancer survivors as superheroes.

Porwit began visualizing her project as early as 2009, she said. Porwit had imagined a project that would reveal the everyday superheroes.

Her first portrait was of her son, who she portrayed as Spiderman. “There was something about the look in his eye and the punch he was delivering,” Porwit said. She later painted a portrait of Cat Woman.

There was a six-month span when many of Porwit’s friends were diagnosed with breast cancer. It was like a string of popcorn, a new diagnosis popping up every day, Porwit explained.

“[These women] transformed into superheroes in the midst of tragedy,” Porwit said. “You wonder what I can do.”

Porwit’s vision was finally taking off with the help of her friend Jill Stanton. Stanton and Porwit were friends who met years ago.

Stanton began undergoing treatment for breast cancer in 2010. During her rounds of chemotherapy, Stanton would post witty Facebook statuses about the songs that were playing on the radio and what super power they gave her.

Porwit followed Stanton’s battle with breast cancer through Facebook. It inspired her to paint a superhero portrait of Stanton. Porwit worked with Staton on the project for a year and a half.

Porwit first asked Stanton two questions.  “If you were to be immortalized as your superhero of choice, who would you be and why?” And “How would you want to be pictured?”

Wonder Woman was somewhat of an inspiration for her portrait, Stanton said. But most of the inspiration came from the Facebook posts that she wrote during chemotherapy.

Stanton is pictured wearing a mirrored bra and with her arms crossed above her head. Around her are golden paths created by cancer cells zooming across the canvas.

“It’s me facing cancer cells and deflecting them,” Stanton said.

Stanton’s portrait, “Radiation Diva,” includes unique sentiments to which other breast cancer survivors can relate as can those we know someone close who has suffered from the disease.

In Stanton’s painting the golden cuffs she is shown wearing display the barcode from her radiation appointment, while her earrings sport the breast cancer ribbon emblem on them.

Phoenix Rising

Lisa Dahlseid posed for a superhero portrait. “It was too cool not to be a part of,” Dahlseid said.

This project is about the renewal, rebirth, and rising from the ash pile of cancer, Dahlseid said.

In 2007 Dahlseid was diagnosed with a precancerous breast condition. She went in every three months to receive treatment, Dahlseid said.

“A cloud hung over me,” Dahlseid said of her treatment sessions. “I was always afraid.”

She saw Porwit’s project as a second chance.

Dahlseid’s portrait is based on the X-Men character Phoenix. In it Dahlseid stands with her arms outstretched and is surrounded by flames. Around her waist is a belt with the cancer ribbon that lies on her hip.

“I feel like I have overcome and given myself a chance at a new life,” Dahlseid said.

Wonder Woman

Katy Tessman Stanoch, writer of the children’s book “Our Mama is a Beautiful Garden” and mother of two, posed for the Of Scars project in a Wonder Woman outfit.

Of Scars is a project where breast cancer survivors and their surgical scars are photographed.

Stanoch said Porwit, having seen the Of Scars photo of her, asked if she would pose for the superhero project.

While we worked on my portrait we made some slight changes, Stanoch said, her boots in the portrait were changed to red to match the color of Wonder Woman’s. Porwit also included the breast cancer awareness ribbon on Stanoch’s crown.

Barbara asked me if I would like longer hair, but I said no, Stanoch said. “I worked hard for those three inches of hair!” Stanoch said with a laugh.

Stanoch originally did not envision herself as Wonder Woman. “I hated being vulnerable,” Stanoch said. “I hated that my body let this happen.”

But as she started going out into public again and seeing old friends, her perception slowly changed.

Once as she attended a son’s school events she wore a baseball hat to cover the salt and pepper stubble she had for hair. She said that night two fathers of students clapped her on the back. “I knew they were proud of me,” Stanoch said.

Stanoch originally related to Xena Warrior Princess. “But as I was healing more from the surgeries,” Stanoch said. “I started to get more shiny and pretty.”

Women Wonder was more feminine and maternal in Stanoch’s mind, which is another reason why Stanoch chose her.

“Becoming Wonder Woman was such a wonderful bookend to my journey,” Stanoch said.

Future of the Superhero Project  

Porwit has completed six superhero portraits of breast cancer survivors, which were displayed January and February at Boynton Health Services on the University of Minnesota campus.

Gary Christenson, chief medical officer at Boynton and head of acquisition of art for the facility, said, “Art has the power to relieve anxiety, intrigue, and even distract.”

But, he said, Porwit’s art was also a public message used to “raise awareness and change the image of those who are dealing with breast cancer.”

At Boynton’s opening night in January there were at least 75 people there, Christenson said, adding, “Barbara herself is extremely energetic and devoted to the cause.”

All the proceeds from the superhero project are donated to the Breast Cancer Association, Porwit said. She will attend a conference for the Global Alliance for Art and Health in Houston, Texas, April 9-12. Donations can be made to help Porwit cover her travel expenses at http://www.gofundme.com/79xsug.

Martha Lueders is studying journalism at the University of Minnesota.