By P.A. Geddie
Anup Bhandari of Longview was one of those amazing people who made the world a better place in a big way before his life was cut way too short. We first presented Bhandari in the May 2011 issue of County Line, learning about his colorful art that he shared in galleries and shows throughout Northeast Texas.
He was already giving back, donating paintings for good causes for local nonprofits, as well as for the Japanese tsunami victims and Nepali school children. Then, he let us know in 2011 that doing an art project with the homeless was also high on his list of “life’s bright possibilities” he wanted to accomplish.
He took his idea to Newgate Mission, a center that serves needs of the homeless, low-income, and marginalized populations of Longview. He taught art classes there and more and more of those in need started showing up to take them and they created a growing body of artwork he called the Healing Art Project.
By the time I interviewed him and featured him on our March 2019 cover, he was well into the project and had just published a book featuring self portraits by the homeless artists.
Bhandari used his art skills to help homeless people express themselves and to show society that the homeless, though too often unseen, are not invisible.
“They have vision and a voice, and are no less deserving of love and respect,” he told me.
In 2016, Bhandari received an inaugural award, the Anup Bhandari Award for Exceptional Kindness and Dedication to the Newgate Community.
Sadly, Bhandari, passed away just two days after his 40th birthday (March 8, 1980), on March 10, 2020, after suffering a cardiac arrest that left him with an anoxic brain injury.
In the foreward of his book, The Faces of Newgate, are the words “Unity Starts With You.” They served as the inspiration for a mural created in 2021 in downtown Longview to honor Bhandari and his work for the importance of shared humanity.
The Healing Arts Project at Newgate Mission continues today.
