Artist Fernando Avendano

Dia Feliz Adult Day Health Center is a vibrant, joy-filled, multicultural day center in Framingham. It was founded in June 2019 to help care for and engage people with disabilities in the Metrowest area. Dia Feliz is a place where people speak English, Spanish and Portuguese, engage in activities, and meet new friends. Alisson Posada, the Activities Coordinator at Dia Feliz told me that many of the participants enjoy doing arts and crafts. I had the pleasure of meeting with one of the artists Fernando Avendano. Fernando, originally from Ecuador, was beaming as he told me about his life and his art.

An artistic soul

Fernando has lived in the United States for 35 years now. He lives in Framingham with his wife, and has two adult daughters nearby. His son has since moved back to Ecuador to make that his home. Since high school, Fernando has been interested in making art. Fernando’s brother also paints, and his granddaughter is a theatre arts major in college. In Ecuador, Fernando was a teacher. When he came to the United States, he worked for Exxon Mobil as a manager and Citibank as an accountant. Raising a family, there was not much time for art. Like many people, during the pandemic Fernando rediscovered his passion in earnest; he had plenty of time to paint.

“I love to paint because I feel good.”

These days, Fernando paints two or three paintings a day; at Dia Feliz and at home. His family loves that he paints because it brings him joy. He said he paints mostly with acrylics because it is easier — oil takes a long time. He mixes the color on the palette and uses a small easel on top of a table. He does mostly landscapes and still life paintings. When I asked how long he sits to paint at one time, he answered, “a lot of time. I take a lot of time.”  He believes that everyone is an artist and that all can benefit from creating. “Just forget all the problems, all your sickness, everything–just paint. I go into the painting and concentrate on that.”  Fernando paints flowers as well as landscapes.

It was a pleasure to meet with Fernando at Dia Feliz Day Heath Center. I left feeling uplifted and glad that such a place exists for him and others. To find out more about Dia Feliz click here.