Healthcare Heroes

Beginning Monday, June 7, 2021, the Orange County Regional History Center (65 E. Central Blvd.
Orlando, Florida 32801) presents Healthcare Heroes: Portraits of Orlando Health’s Front line Workers, a group of thirteen large, stunning portraits by Central Florida-based artist Nelson Cárdenas that will be on display in the museum’s atrium through August 15, 2021.

Cárdenas, who is also a cook at the Orlando Health Dr. P. Phillips Hospital, created the portraits of Orlando Health employees using oil paints and a technique called pyrography, which uses blowtorches. His artwork honors and provides an intimate look at the community’s front line healthcare staff who have worked tirelessly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the opening, Nelson pulled out a scroll which he said was a list of what inspired him to do the project. He pointed out, that if inspiration were a switch, it would always be on. On the scroll was a long list of names of healthcare workers who had helped save lives for the past 12months during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he was humbles to see his work on display at the History Center. As he put it, this was every artist’s dream.