the Prodigal and the Father

Sometimes I make studies that are copies of the work of a famous artist, in this case, Rembrandt van Rijn. Copying a great work is a time-honored tradition for those who study art. By copying one can see the work  with more intelligence and feel, perhaps, what the intent might have been behind those brushstrokes.

I read a book a few years ago during this time of Lent, that was profoundly devotional and about Art. The title is "The Return of the Prodigal Son, A Story of Homecoming" by Henri J.M. Nouwen. (available on Amazon)

Henri Nouwen focuses the entire book on a painting by Rembrandt "Return of the Prodigal Son". This great masterpiece is on display in the The Hermitage, St. Petersburg. (What I would give to travel to see that museum.) 

Nouwen goes into great detail about the meaning of the parable, told by Jesus in the New Testament, and also about Rembrandt the artist. As I read this book, I was struck by the many separate parts of the painting that Nouwen was able to bring forth and make vividly real with his descriptions. For instance, Nouwen notices that the two hands of the Father are not alike. The right hand (left as we look at the picture) is quite feminine, and the left hand is masculine. I had to find a larger image than the one supplied with the book to get the impact. Did Rembrandt mean to picture the Father as both feminine and masculine? Also the prodigal son who has his face buried in the lap of his father is kind of bald, in fact he resembles a newborn baby. Maybe to show his absolute helplessness?

As a devotional practice I copied a part of the painting with just the hands and the son's face. It was very meaningful as I drew, and thought, while I was drawing about the words and meanings of this story.

Here is a small image of the real masterpiece by Rembrandt and also the cover of the book by Henri Nouwen.

The Return of the Prodigal Son, c. 1669 Rembrandt van Rijn

December 12 Third Advent Sunday

Isaiah 7:14...He will be called Immanuel which means God is with us.

This little line drawing was originally a birth announcement for a baby boy born on this day.

Sunday, November 7

Today is All Saints Day in the liturgical church calendar. It is a traditional day for baptisms and renewal of baptismal vows.

I drew this vase with these white roses today. I focused on the purity of line and value as a spiritual exercise. I had purchased white roses this past week after reading an article on the significance of white roses and white candles for purifying the home during this time of transition between seasons.

Psalm 149:1

Hallelujah!Sing to the Lord a new song;

sing His praise in the congregation of the faithful.


Psalm 93:5
Holiness befits thy house,
O Lord, forevermore.

My paintings for the church were returned to me so I can show a final scanned image. I am selling these if anyone is interested-contact the artist. Two canvases,  each 10"by10" , acrylic.

community, church life, and marriage

About the church and marriage painting project; I myself have been married for a very, very long time.  Reflecting on the subject within the worship theme, the image of love and marriage could be represented by the larger community that nourishes and upholds a married couple.
The climbing and twining vine that is much stronger than each individual growing stem represents to me a more true visual of what happens in a strong Christian marriage.

         (detail of art displayed at Church of the Resurrection )

As I reflected on marriage and life in the church the image of that climbing vine which is now embracing my flower garden became the compelling visual metaphor. It is beautiful, and it is strong, (just try pulling it out.)
Chains do not hold a marriage together.  It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years.  ~Simone Signoret  

Life has taught us that love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.  ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand and Stars, 1939, translated from French by Lewis Galantière 

Nobody has ever before asked the nuclear family to live all by itself in a box the way we do.  With no relatives, no support, we've put it in an impossible situation.  ~Margaret Mead 

You can kiss your family and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives in you.  ~Frederick Buechner

community Church Art this past Sunday in October

The display shown here, as it has been appearing this month during a series of talks about Marriage and Celibacy and the community in the Church. the title is  "Imitating God: Becoming like Jesus in Marriage and Celibacy". I enjoyed the contributions of multiple artists, all of us part of the same Church body, yet so different in life experience.

 I am including a post written by the artist who headed up the project and created the art based on a traditional iconic image of the Resurrected Christ pulling Adam and Eve out of the grave.

Here is a link to view Laura Tabbut's artwork and her complete writing on the subject.

http://www.churchrez.org/rezblog/creating-artwork-for-the-marriage-sermon-series/

(the following is quoted from Laura Tabbut in a blog post)

"The Assignment"
Part of imitating Christ is acknowledging the fact that God created us as creative beings. When God created Adam and Eve, He gifted them with imagination and an appreciation for beauty. At Church of the Resurrection we seek to use our artistic and creative gifts to help lead others into the presence and worship of our God. In the middle of September, the worship arts team gathered a group of artists to begin creating art on the theme of imitating God and becoming like Jesus in marriage and celibacy. Seven adult artists worked in collaboration with four children to create artwork for the marriage sermon series. These artists include: Lois Easley, Brittney Dunn, Matthew Larson, Michael Skura, Laura Tabbut, Janice Wood, and Ray Wu. The artists were given the traditional iconic image of the resurrected Christ pulling Adam and Eve out of their graves for inspiration. However, the artists were allowed to develop their own artistic ideas apart from this image. After painting, the canvases were collected and attached together in the shape of a cross.

“Out of the Mouths of Babes”
Noel, one of the four children involved in the project, created a unique painting about his family. When I, Laura, first met with Noel to work on his painting, I was quite astonished by the initial sketch he created for his final painting. I had suggested to the kids that they should draw a picture of what they thought family was all about. Completely out of the blue, Noel brought me a picture a pomegranate to paint on his canvas. I thought I would be seeing a picture of his family or his new baby brother like all the other kids had drawn. When I asked him why he had chosen to draw a pomegranate. He said to me: “Well, the pomegranate is like a family. It is one fruit, but it has lots of seeds in it - like grandmas and grandpas, moms and dads and kids! And a pomegranate is like the church.” In the early Christian art of the catacombs, the pomegranate was used as a symbol of the Resurrection of Christ and the Christian hope for eternal life. Later, the pomegranate was used to symbolize the church with many seeds unified in one fruit. With his pomegranate painting, Noel added over two thousand years of artistic tradition to this collaborative artwork.

Bring It All Together
The unique quality of this artwork is that eleven people created very different images, and yet they all work in a harmonious dialogue. Together they create an energy that is greater any one of the individual images. Whether married, celibate, or a child still growing up, God has profound things to teach us, and very unique journeys for all of us. Art by Laura Tabbut, Written by Laura Tabbut

The image of the pomegranate is one that I myself would like to explore in a future work!

Art for the Church

I attend an Anglican church with a vibrant artist community. And our church celebrates and supports all artists, not just the musical ones, with many events and opportunities to display our various gifts. This is very encouraging for us visual artists.

Recently 12 artists accepted a commission to portray a subject that would be the focus of a month long sermon series. Titled "Imitating God: Becoming like Jesus in Marriage and Celibacy", we were all challenged to paint a canvas with our own images on the subject. Some of us are older, some young, some married, some single, showing a variety of gifts from the church body. We all contributed 10 x10 canvases which were combined to form the shape of a cross. This finally has been displayed near the altar as a visual part of worship. I am pleased and privileged to be a part of the community.
I ended up painting two canvases which were stacked vertically at the top of the cross formation. Which brings me back to my post about the morning glory vine, as it became my theme. I have the vine beginning on one panel with a strong center climbing vine. Entering the frame from either side are two slender vines that meet at the center, find each other, twine and grow into the top panel and become a unit at the top.


Ecclesiastes 4:12 (New International Version)
 ^12.  Though one may be overpowered,  two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.


(Showing here the work in progress, a line drawing in black on the canvas, a red under-painting and some blue-violet to begin defining my shapes. I'll show the finished version in a few days)

a climbing vine

This year we are enjoying a warm sunny autumn. Leaves are beginning to turn yellow, orange, and red but my flower garden is still blooming. It doesn't resemble a gardening magazine photo because the multi-color zinnias, yellow rudebeckia, and bright pink annuals are all overgrown and tumbling every which way. And weaving through all that chaos is a morning glory vine that I heedlessly planted from a packet of seeds years ago. I can never get rid of it. By late summer every year it has reseeded, gained strength and almost chokes the entire garden patch.

I have been involved with a painting project that seems the perfect metaphor for that climbing vine. I gathered huge clumps of the vines and put them in vases all over my (still very Messy!) studio to study and sketch. Every morning as I walked into my room I have been greeted by a new brilliant blue patch of opening flowers. They really are most brilliant in the morning.

The subject of the paintings that I've been working on is marriage(!)  Here are the two panels on my desk while in process, I like to start with a red background when using acrylics.

And, finally, Alleluia!

The Lord is Risen, He is risen indeed.

I painted this in March of 2006 as part of a series of easter lilies. This one is 60x48, almost as large as the banners I just finished. I have some new unfinished canvases of more lilies that I hope to complete soon this year.

Days of Creation

This is my color sketch which I gave to the Visual Arts committee. We all became very excited about how cool it would look as part of the Easter Vigil service as the scripture from the first book of Genesis would be read, and each banner would lower to make a complete visual. 

(However many days God actually spent Creating our Universe is not my concern here, for the sake of Design I have six days and six banners to illustrate a very big subject!)

In the following weeks of enthusiasm, fabric was purchased, and the banners were constructed and sewn by many helpful hands. Six giant bolts of lovely white denim were delivered to me last week and I began some long days of creative intensity. 

I have had some very willing and talented volunteers to help me paint. And the work is still going on today, I still have all the fish in the sea and birds in the sky to draw right now. My feet and legs are very sore from standing and painting for 12 to 14 hours a day.

Future posts to come showing progress and finished project!

Creativity, Creation, Creator

Well, folks, I am back. I haven't been here to record in my art journal for a month. And I have so much to share! March was so busy ; a nice big illustration assignment came in with very quick deadlines; then a trip to Paris! as a chaperon with a high school student French group; and now, during Holy Week I am painting six huge banners for my church to use on Saturday night for the Easter Vigil service.

Yes, three days away and a very short deadline indeed.

How did I get myself into such a tight corner? Not unusual at all for me. Way back in February I agreed to be on the Visual Arts committee, but I have never been a good committee member. I usually sketch and doodle during meetings and as this meeting about Easter week proceeded I began to scribble away on the back of the handouts. We were discussing the Scripture readings and talking about the Genesis chapter 1 creation account. As I listened, inspiration struck me and I am posting here my scribbles that became the six huge banners. Tomorrow I will post my color sketches.

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."