Israeli ex-sniper blasts paint in mental health message

David Roytman uses a pistol to shoot bags filled with paint, which then splatter onto a wood-board canvas, creating the artwork that between $5,000 and $10,000 apiece; 'This is my healing by art,' he says
Reuters|
Former Israeli army sniper David Roytman has turned his hand to action painting, using guns and live-fire ranges instead of brushes and studios to blast colors onto canvases.
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  • In Israel, Roytman uses a pistol to shoot bags filled with paint, which then splatter onto a wood-board canvas, creating the artwork. In his native Ukraine, he creates paintings in a similar way by using the cannon of a World War Two-era tank.
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    Roytman uses gun to apply paint in art work
    Roytman uses gun to apply paint in art work
    Roytman uses gun to apply paint in art work
    (Photo: Reuters)
    Roytman, 42, describes the method as way to exorcise difficult memories from his combat service.
    "This is my healing by art. When I'm shooting - not on people, not in a war, not during the military service - I'm doing this for my, let's say, fun, for my way to say something to the world," he said. "It makes me feel at peace."
    3 View gallery
    Artist David Roytman shoots paint at canvas
    Artist David Roytman shoots paint at canvas
    Artist David Roytman shoots paint at canvas
    (Photo: Reuters)
    Amidst the resulting splashes and holes, he intersperses letters in Hebrew, English and Russian, seemingly at random - an invitation on the viewer to form words.
    Twenty of the unusual works have sold at between $5,000 and $10,000 apiece, said Roytman, who also designs high-end Judaica.
    3 View gallery
    Art work made by former IDF snipper David Roytman
    Art work made by former IDF snipper David Roytman
    Art work made by former IDF snipper David Roytman
    (Photo: Reuters)
    The art's message is that "everybody needs to think, when they are sending their boys to fight, to protect their country - they need to remember that when they come back they need support," Roytman said, alluding to veterans' mental health.
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