Jackson Free Press

Artist K. Parish Harvey's bubbly attitude and sweet face hides well the pain she's had to deal lately, a pain that her love and passion for art has helped her cope with.

In the past eight months, 18-year-old Harvey completed an art show in honor of her mom, Laura Harvey, who died suddenly of blood clots in her brain on Sept. 29, 2010.

Harvey was devastated. She didn't leave her room for a month, but with her father and older brother supporting her, Harvey found the strength to go on. Even though she was mourning and going through the hardest time of her life, Harvey continued to draw.

"The moment she died--I have a piece that's like that moment, that feeling--and right after I did that piece, I felt a huge weight off my shoulders," Harvey says.

Before her mother's passing, Harvey created art for her mom as a gift for mother's day. She finished the gifts, drew new things and even learned to do photo transfers in honor of her mother.

Her artwork became a part of her three-day show, "I'll See You On Friday," at the Arts Center of Mississippi last week.

Harvey says that doing this has helped her deal with the pain of losing her mother, but at first she had reservations. She can remember asking herself, "Why am I doing this? It's not like it's going to bring her back." Despite her worries, she continued. The art became her stress relief.

"Each piece has been how I've gotten through every single moment that I've had to live with since Sept. 29," Harvey says. "I want other people to appreciate their family and friends."

Now, she has started a new project exploring times of beauty.

Harvey recently graduated from the Education Center School in Jackson and has big plans for the future. After her art show, Harvey will intern at the Arts Center of Mississippi for one year. She then plans to attend Pratt at Munson-Williams-Proctor, an accredited art school in upstate New York.

Although the short exhibit has ended, Harvey is still showing pieces from "I'll See You on Friday" on her website.