Star in the East

And finally, this is Star in the East, part of the 8x8 Show at the Museum of Biblical Art last evening! Being so far away, I really have no idea how it went, so I'll just have to wait to hear... I was so honored to be able to participate in this event, which is only by invitation. It confirms that my calling in art is truly a gift from God and that I should continue to put an emphasis on him and his word in my work - maybe even emphasize it more, which can be a frightening thing in the open market where I show and sell my art. I would appreciate your prayers and support in this...

This piece is once again a depiction of a piece of the story of Christ's birth in Luke 2 and Matthew 2. Specifically Matthew 2:1-2, "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.'"

The photo that I chose had a natural spot where light was shining through the branches and it made the perfect location for the star, in fact, this is where the concept of the star came from for all four pieces. There is a map of Bethlehem, where the star would lead the wise men to find Christ, and a cow that marks his birth in a stable. While it is easy for the story to get old in the retelling, it is still an amazing thing that the king of glory would come to earth in such a humble manner, first into the lives of such young and inexperienced parents, so completely humble. Like the wise men, we have to be looking for his signs to find him, then seek him out. When we do, we are warmly welcomed, whether we are rich and kingly or the lowest in our society as were the shepherds. It's most often a quiet thing, but the most important thing we could ever do...

In the Field

I forgot to post this yesterday, so I guess I'll just post both remaining Christmas works today...

Titled "In the Field" this piece refers again to the shepherds who were watching their flocks just outside Bethlehem when angels appeared to them and told them about the Christ child. You can see the sheep in the foreground along with another map of Bethlehem. The barn in the photo recalls the stable the Messiah was born in and the little seedling represents a new life. (Christ is also referred to as the sprout out of Jesse's family in Isaiah.) A few words of the scripture from Luke is in the upper left corner and the star is once again present. This was actually a close runner up in my decision making process for which piece to put in the show.

In the City of David

The second Christmas work I'm sharing is titled "In the City of David" from the passage in Luke 2:10-14 spoken to the shepherds in the field...

 "And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

Again, you'll find a map of Bethlehem, sheep, nearly hidden scripture and the star that shown over where the Christ child was born. And once more there is a photo of palm trees, which refer not only to the Holy Lands, but are my personal symbol for heaven. Appropriate, since the birth of the Messiah is what ultimately opens the gates of heaven for us all.

Go to Bethlehem

Just in time for Christmas...

 A little more than a month ago I was invited to a special museum show, asking for a Christmas themed work (and to keep the whole thing hush-hush.) I felt incredibly honored even on the crazy short deadline I was given and I said yes right away. But I didn't have time for pressure and over thinking to screw up my creative process, so I decided to make not one piece, but four, and then to choose the one I liked best to submit. Since there was no pressure for any single work, I was able to work out my chosen theme in four different ways and in the end I was quite happy with all four. So I'll present them here in the next few days and by the time I show you the final one, I'll be able to say where it went as well.

All four works were based on the familiar story about the birth of Christ from Luke 2 and Matthew 2. This work is called "Go to Bethlehem" as that is where Joseph and Mary had to go and so followed the shepherds and the wise men...You can see in this piece a map of Bethlehem, a sketch of animals that could have been in a stable, scripture from the Bible story and the photo of palms to help you envision the town of Bethlehem.

prophecy of hope

Just so you don't think I've been slacking on this Art of Christmas project, here's a shot of my work in progress, which I'm calling "Prophecy of Hope" based on Isaiah 11:1. You can read more about this piece at my Wanderings blog.

I'm also hoping to get more images and details about artworks when the show goes up - next week!

jm

love wins

Collage artist Eileen Downes recently posted this piece for Easter with the simple message, "Jesus died and rose again for us." A perfect reflection on how Easter ties in to our hope of heaven - we already know how the story ends.

hope

I just finished a new piece titled "Hope." (You can click on the image to see it bigger.) Sometimes things seem very hard, but if we just look we'll see the hope shining through a situation. Hope is referred to many times in Scripture, and often is a direct reference to the knowledge that we will have eternal life with Christ in heaven - which when we really think about it, can really put things into perspective...

I'm thinking that this will start a new series for me, I really want to look forward a bit more. It's so easy to get caught in what we have to deal with now, and it can be hard to remember the hope we have to look forward to.

(You can see a little more about how this piece came to be on my Wanderings blog.)

creative journaling

Last week we had another Creative Call journaling exercise - this time a collage prayer. We found words and images in magazines, then collaged them together in our journals as a prayer, asking God for the things we need, thanking him for what he's given us, whatever we needed to talk to him about. We didn't worry about whether it made sense to anyone else, because we know that God knows. I'm sharing my collage prayer here, so that you can get the idea and try one of your own - a nice way to journal, I think.

To see this image larger, just click on it, then click your back button to get back to this post - As for what some of this means, the big frame is around the whole thing; I want my life to be God's work of art, so I'm framing this prayer to express that. The word nature and natural images are references to the inspiration I have for much of my work, which I am so thankful for. I need from God his guidance daily for my own artistic growth which is so rewarding to me - and I always want to be sending God's message of love. Down below is the word studio - I'll be renting new studio space soon, which God will have to bless financially or I won't be able to do it very long, so that's a big request right now.

All these things were on my collage but it was missing something, and I didn't know what, so I was looking through one of my art magazines and found the quote, "You've got to touch people. That's why you create art." That pretty much sums it all up. Amen

peeking through heaven's door

Today we'll take another look at the doorway to heaven, this time through the eyes of Eileen Downes, who uses peices of paper to 'paint' with -

I have always been fascinated by doors, windows, portals, passageways and their symbolic meaning. I have saved such imagery for many years - photos from vacations, magazines, family member’s trips, my own illustrations etc... anything about doors really. I have used some of these fragments in the previous collages by layering them over each other, often intertwining them, into an artistic arrangement. Glimpses and views of wonderfully beautiful places symbolic of heaven can be seen though the doorways and windows. These pieces are complete art pieces in their own right, but they are also preparatory illustrations to the larger piece that I recently completed.

This large piece incorporates a real antique door that the viewer must actually open to reveal the imagery behind. This interactive art piece asks the viewer to make a motion, a decision to open, just like we are asked to make a motion to accept Christ as our Savior.

Doors and windows are symbolic imagery that I use in these pieces to convey the essence of heaven. We can pass though these portals of life like we pass from this world into our eternal life in heaven. The Bible references doors in several verses. For example:

Psalm 78:23 "Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens."

Revelation 4:1 "After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.'"

Genesis 28:17 "He was afraid and said, 'How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.'"

Although the following verse does not specifically mention “doors” it does so indirectly by indicating that there are many rooms in heaven: John 14:2 "In my Fathers house are many rooms; and if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you."


- Eileen Downes

Eileen Downes' visions

Finally I am getting back to this blog! It seems I have a case of vacation-itis; while not actually on vacation, my brain nonetheless seems to be strongly leaning in that direction... then Eileen was good enough to send me some of her notes, right as I was realizing I needed to post something new. While most of us are working quite diligently on the project, it's not always something that gets to the blog right away.

So, Eileen Downes in her own words:

I have always been fascinated by doors, windows, portals, passageways and their symbolic meaning. I have saved such imagery for many years - photos from vacations, magazines, family member’s trips, my own illustrations etc …anything about doors really. I have used some of these fragments in these three collages by layering them over each other, often intertwining them, into an artistic arrangement. Glimpses and views of wonderfully beautiful places symbolic of heaven can be seen though the doorways and windows.

These three pieces together with the previously posted piece titled: My Visit with God, are complete art pieces in their own right, but they are also preparatory illustrations to the larger piece that I am currently working on. This large piece will incorporate a real antique door that the viewer must actually open to reveal the imagery behind. This interactive art piece asks the viewer to make a motion, a decision to open, just like we are asked to make a motion to accept Christ as our Savior. More information and photos of this piece will be included later as it progresses.


"Visions of Heaven #1," 15” x 12” Collage

Doors and windows are symbolic imagery that I use in these pieces to convey the essence of heaven. We can pass though these portals of life like we pass from this world into our eternal life in heaven. The Bible references doors in several verses.

For example, Psalm 78:23 "Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens."


"Visions of Heaven #2," 15” x 12” Collage

Revelation 4:1, "After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.'"

Genesis 28:17, "He was afraid and said, 'How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.'"


"Visions of Heaven #3," 15” x 12” Collage

Although the following verse does not specifically mention “doors” it does so indirectly by indicating that there are many rooms in heaven:

John 14:2, "In my Fathers house are many rooms; and if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you."

feasting in the kingdom of heaven

Becky Baker recently shared her vision of feasting in heaven, a deliciously complex image full of meaning. Her sketch here is for a base of fired clay with images of collaged paper and paint to show a feast in heaven "among our beloved pets and family." On the lower section of the piece is an image of hell, separated from the feast. She says she also "will include an angel or two to show that they will be at the service of man in heaven." (See Hebrews 1:14.)

Becky's scriptural reference for this piece is Luke 14:15 which says, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the Kingdom of God." This concept of feasting in heaven is repeated several times, including in Isaiah 25:6, Matthew 8:11 and Revelation 19:9. That's a meal you won't want to miss...

something from Eileen Downes

One of our resident collage artists, Eileen Downes, sent a heaven image to me, created in response to her father's death, I believe a few years ago. She says, "It is about talking, visiting, and communing with God in his dwelling place, heaven. Clock imagery is added as a reference to time both eternal and to our time here on earth. Some words and phrases are visible, but most important is the phrase 'to embrace the dream.'"

Eileen pairs the piece, a 13 x 10" collage titled "My Visit With God," with the Biblical reference that God has prepared a place for us in heaven to be with Him. "In my Father’s house there are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. And I go and prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also will be where I am. You know the way to the place that I am going." John 14: 2-4

The subject of heaven and loved ones that have gone through the door of death form a natural juxaposition. It can also be a great source of comfort for those of left behind. I personally find this piece interesting because I, too, have a piece of artwork that I was working on when my father died, and it became part of my grieving process. In its own way, that piece also references heaven, so maybe I'll post it as well, at some time in the future.