The Art and Spirit of Tom Faught Part 2

My husband Ron and I just returned from another visit to Maui. When we visited in April of 2012, I had the chance to meet Tom Faught, an amazing sculptor and ceramic artist. I wrote about him in The Heart of the Artist at that time from the perspective of him facing his transition from this life due to Stage 4 metastatic cancer. He was very frail but so positive. And he was saying his goodbyes.

I found it odd that I hadn’t heard of his passing, so I took a chance and emailed him. To my surprise, he emailed me right back and invited us to his home for a visit.

Tom greeted us, smiling and robust with a new lust for life. Tom decided not to take the terminal diagnosis from his doctors as true and researched online to find help, and he did. He learned about the use of a Hyperbaric Chamber. Figuring it couldn’t hurt; Tom traveled to Oahu and started treatments. Hyperbaric chambers are used to improve the quality of life for many people using 100% medical grade oxygen in a pressurized chamber. Originally created as a treatment for the bends, this treatment is known to help numerous medical conditions. The theory is that being in the chamber stimulates the immune system to fight off disease. The therapy has been shown to help everything from Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Lyme Disease, sports injuries, Migraine and Cluster headaches to Stroke and Traumatic Brain Injuries. There were no guarantees, but in Tom’s case, it worked a miracle.

Now Tom rides his bike 12 miles a day and has shifted his artist drive into creating a delightful series of sometimes satiric self-portrait drawings. He has changed his studio into a beautiful gallery of his large ceramic pieces and sculptures.

Tom and I discovered that we had both just read Proof of Heaven, a book by Dr. Eban Alexander. This life changing book showed us both that there is so much more out there than we can imagine. Tom says he went from being an atheist to being a theist by reading the book. That’s a pretty strong statement, but I understand. Always there is a way for our lives to be more beautiful. Tom, Eban, and Tom’s son Graham demonstrate this.

Tom’s recovery came just in time because last January, his beautiful 21 year old surfer son Graham broke his neck in a surfing accident. Tom has been able to significantly help with his son’s recovery encouraging him to never give up. Now paralyzed, Graham has now gained enough movement to begin feeding himself, and undaunted like his father, has figured out a way to draw striking portraits. Instead of giving up with self-pity, his plan is to be able to support himself with his art like his dad has done.

I am grateful for the inspiration of these courageous men. Their lives touch so many more and their art will always show their brilliance.

Check out Tom’s website at Artist Tom Faught Studio and Foundry