Neighbor gets heartwarming surprise by 'kind friend' who eternalized their bond in a painting

Art is the most genuine and emotional form of self-expression and a painter knows very well how to capture someone's emotions. Not only do they capture a person on their canvas, but through their colors, they bring out that individual's inner qualities. It is what Catharine O'Neill achieved with her latest presentation at the exhibition "Seeing Ithaca." The beautiful painting features Farah Bakaari, who has been the painter's neighbor for many years. In the painting, she beautifully captures the bond she has developed with her neighbor. Bakaari shared her gratitude in a Twitter thread, which has since gone viral.

Bakaari and O'Neill share a lovely relationship and support each other through the ups and downs of life. Therefore, it was not shocking for Bakaari when O'Neill extended an invitation to visit her art show opening. O'Neill asked, "Hey, I have a painting at this art show opening on Friday, maybe you wanna come?" Bakaari was beyond ecstatic, as she knew her neighbor was a brilliant artist of over 50 years. Anything that she would put forward would be a sight for sore eyes. However, she was taken aback by a weird demand from O'Neill.

O'Neill added to her invitation, "If you want you can wear your yellow dress." The wish was a bit weird for her. She was going to an art show opening and wanted to dress up to the best of her capabilities, therefore, the yellow dress was not something she had on her mind. Still, she complied with the wish because of her affection for O'Neill. She replied, "Well, it's dirty…if I can wash it in time."

The day arrived and Bakaari was excited about going to the opening. As soon as she entered the State of the Art Gallery, everyone turned and looked at her. At first, she did not really understand what was going on, but later on, after seeing the painting, everything started to make sense to her. The said painting had Bakaari as the central character, interacting in O'Neill's garden, and was titled "Yellow Dress." 

The theme behind the exhibition "Seeing Ithaca" was promoting the city and its diversity and showcasing things artists love about it. In her painting, O'Neill presented Bakaari and a few other people interacting in her garden. It implied that her favorite thing about the city is how people come together, just the way she and Bakaari had. Through her colors on the canvas, she has reflected the genuine affection she carries for her neighbor. It implies that her existence in Ithaca will be incomplete without Bakaari and the brightness she brings to her life.

The dress request that Bakaari felt was weird was the dress O'Neill chose to reflect the brightness she brings into their life. Bakaari was incredibly moved and shared the story on Twitter. It quickly garnered a lot of popularity, with people gushing about the bond. @EmileJames_ hopes the painting is with Bakaari, "Someone better has bought that gorgeous painting for you! If not, I will!" @Shuru_Q loved the story and did not believe Bakaari's assertions about the dress, "Beautiful painting. And you do look amazing in that yellow dress."