Mark Gutkin bio

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Mark was drawn to photography in High School.  He loved the ability to create an image through an entirely different angle and perspective.  Born in St Petersburg, Russia, Mark has always felt a deep connection to his city.   As evidenced by many of his pieces, St. Petersburg drew him back, even after immigrating to the United States.

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A former network engineer having been wheel-chair bound after a serious car accident, Mark rehabilitated himself to full mobility and was able to return to a variety of hobbies such as skiing, kayaking, travel, and of course, photography.  Inspired greatly by his own recovery, he decided to make a change of career to guiding the healing of others.  After graduating Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, he now maintains a private acupuncture practice in Stamford, CT. 

 

While visiting his teacher in Kerala, India during one of his many trips abroad, he was taken to an orphanage that 22 children call home.  It was nothing more than a shack with four rooms made into an office, a class-room, sleep/study quarters and a small kitchen cramped into an area of approximately 80 by 60 square feet. After speaking with the principal, he learned that it takes approximately $800 a month to cover base expenses such as food, rent, electricity and salaries for the three people running the orphanage. Moved by what he saw, he donated a monthly operating expense. In return, Mark received the usual “Namaste” but then the principal, (a man in his 60s), leaned down on his knees and touched his feet.

 

According to the Chinese Medicine that he practices, shock is an emotion that initially affects the heart, and that exactly what it did.  Mark committed to supporting $500 of the operating budget of this small community on monthly basis, and three years later it continues to thrive and flourish.  ‘Canvas for a Cause’ devotes 100% of the proceeds for any sale of his work directly to “his children” so many miles away.