The Inspiration of Illumination

This is the story of my John 3:16 piece, Illumination, and my summer 08 miracle.

The idea first came ot me in Fall ;07, but there was no time to attempt it for my graduate show. In late spring of '08, I dabbled with the drawing, finally sizing it and mapping out the direction. That summer, I began the slow job of painting it.

As the first major shows of the season approached, I thought to enter it in one. It would be a tight race, but I felt it would be a tribute to the One who gave me art. The fair had a prepay entry system whereas the gallery show was day-of enrollment. I entered two other pieces in the fair hoping to finish them and this in the remaining week and a half. Both show deadlines were the same Saturday. By the previous weekend, I realized there was no way everything could get done especially as all pieces required framing including a custom mat for the calligraphy which could take several days to weeks to order! I made the hard decision to focus on the prepaid fair entries and scrap the calligraphy. I told God that I wanted to enter it, but that He would have to provide a miracle if He wanted that piece in that show. That was Saturday.

By Tuesday, the fair entriese that had been fighting me for months were pretty much finished. There was a slim chance I could make progress on the calligraphy... but the final three days all had half-day commitments that had come up over the weekend—interviews, errands, etc. I gave it a shot anyway and while running the errands found a frame shop that could do an overnight mat. Though not what I'd envisioned, the matboard was the only one that remotely worked with the half-done artwork. It later proved the perfect match for the finish! With framing for all work in progress, I turned my attention to actual completion.

I had a certain look in mind, but no clue how to achieve it. Every attempt seemed to be getting worse or at least going nowhere, but I decided to keep trying. If it didn't turn out, I'd just swallow the $85 for the framing... I wasn't going to show a second-rate piece “to the glory of God.” This had to be the best or else.

Then, I looked at it again, and it looked... better. This wasn't the improvement of desperation where it just looks better since it has to (like with a graduate show!) It really looked... better. All I can think is that God was doing the painting and I was just messing around. Sometimes, things went right and I didn't know what I was doing or where I was going with it... It just painted itself. Other times, I made mistakes and then they fixed themselves revealing an even better plan than what I had been shooting for. It was so strange. All I can say is that God wanted that piece in the show and wanted the credit since only He could have done it right anyway.

In the end, every tiny detail in execution and framing fell into place and it was entered. And boy, does that work declare His glory! I still marvel at it with a sense of awe every time I see it. It's not my handiwork, but merely a work my hands were used to create. It glorifies Him with it's very being and I think that is what He intended.

Six months later, I added the tetragrammaton to the four diamond shapes which were previously blank. It seemed the fitting final touch. Out of respect for Jewish tradition, those four letters are not included in disposable prints such as brochures and cards.

After posting yesterday, I've had roses on my mind. When we went for our morning walk, I again noticed the joyful bush. And this time I did something about it. With a beautiful sunny day outside and a schedule to keep me in, I decided to bring a little bit of that summer to my computer. So several buds and bits of foliage later, here is the 2nd tiny treasure! The flax blossoms really bring out the color in the roses, and the new growth on the ferns is just the right size to complement them! Little blessings that make the day.

The Little Things

It's been a month since my last post. I've spent a lot of that time trying to think of what to post next. I was waiting for something deep... but sitting here realized that life isn't about those deep moments. They are good, but not what we feed on. It's really the little things that make life wonderful. The deep moments just help us see the daily better.

I went for a walk this morning. It's coming into summer here. The flowers have been blooming for some time now, taking turns at their annual week in the limelight. The fruit trees have bloomed and given over to full leaf. The first bulbs of spring are going back to sleep until 2010. Azaleas and rhododendrons are in full glory, but it's the summer flowers that are just starting to wake up. Among them is my little rose bush. It's a little Perle d'Or, I think, similar to a Cecil Bruner and oh so fragrant! The flowers are short-lived, but joyful in their existance. I've described them as beautiful buds that sneeze upon opening! They start out petite and dainty then *poof* a pompom of petals.

We bought the plant for $5 at a garage sale last summer. It's the perfect first bush in my life as I prefer the fragrance over the shape. (Though both is always a nice surprise!) It settled in most happily and blooms away during the warmer months. One afternoon last summer, I painted the blossoms in a tiny brass pitcher. The flowers and vase seemed to suit each other so perfectly, but time was my enemy as they started to sniff and snort before the inevitable sneeze! Perhaps it was that pressure combined with the beauty before me that kept my brush recording quickly but accurately and resulted in the freshness of the finished piece. It was a good moment to capture because it is one I need to remember to look for daily--the Tiny Treasure.

Faith, Hope, Love, 8x10, oil

This recent painting seems a good one to begin a blog with. For one thing, it is a painting of the foundations for all my work.

Faith is represented by the Bible which is where it all starts. That faith in Christ's finished work gives me a solid past, present, and future. Moving forward, the dried rose is a symbol of hope. Just as blossoms fade from year to year and are replaced by new ones, so we move through the seasons of our lives leaving old dreams and discovering new ones. So long as that hope is rooted in the faith, it will never be ashamed because the small hopes are dwarfed and interpreted by our great eternal hope. And love. The pitcher, a gift from a friend, is a reminder that there are people all over the world now who love me--a humbling thought. And it's not because of who I am, but because of God first loving us and teaching us to love one another. It's really His love flowing through them. In a sense, we are like pitchers being filled and pouring out. And that brings us full circle back to the Bible again. Because that is where we first learn of His love, which inspires faith and gives us hope... and teaches us to love each other.