I currently have a solo show entitled “Of the Spirit” displayed at the Meridian Library on Cherry Lane. It’s up until March 15th, 2023!
The show consists of two series, each with three paintings.
Holy Week
The first series of three works, “Holy Week,” was created for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. These works were created with the same large woodblock print over underpaintings on paper to observe the tradition.
Maundy Thursday is the observance of the Last Supper that Christ had with his followers before he was crucified.
The same large woodblock, for a print the entire size of the image, was used in all three of the works in this series to unify them as part of Holy Week. The woodblock print (over the muted colors and yellow stripe in the underpainting) in “Maundy Thursday Landscape” is a deep purple, the Lenten color of introspection.
The same large woodblock, for a print the entire size of the image, was used in all three of the works in this series to unify them as part of Holy Week. The woodblock print (over the somber greys, greens, and purples in the underpainting) in “A Dark Day: Good Friday” is black.
Easter is the observance of the shocking and divine story of Jesus’ resurrection.
The same large woodblock, for a print the entire size of the image, was used in all three of the works in this series to unify them as part of Holy Week. The woodblock print (over the bright yellow and purple underpainting) in “Easter Landscape” is a bright red-orange.
Empathy
The second series of three works, “Empathy,” done on burned and painted basswood, features circles as symbols of beings, bare wood symbolizing suffering, and nails and stretched thread symbolizing good intentions. Good intentions sometimes meet their destination, but very often miss the mark, indicated by the directionless or non-existent threads. The global pandemic, wars, the ravages of climate change, the human condition, and the human spirit are subjects toward which I address the need for empathy.
During the birth of this painting, the entire world started or continued suffering from the coronavirus pandemic, the ravages of climate change, wars, misogyny and the fight to control one’s own body, and bigotry. These struggles are long and continue to grow.
Green-hued “Empathy for the Earth” was created in response to the effects of increasingly worsening climate change. The Earth, herself, will continue to exist regardless of what we do, but we are forcing the destruction of humanity, and living things with which we share the Earth by our actions, or lack of action.
Empathy for all humans and life on the Earth is essential for survival. Some cultures embrace this, but all of us, including the biggest, most powerful nations, must do more. Fortunately, each of us has the power to be individually responsible with our outstretched good intentions.
Firelike “Empathy Of Spirit” was created in response to an increasingly divisive cultural climate. It seems that spiritual differences in how we think about reproductive issues, how we treat our earth and living things, education, thoughts on how our government functions, how we treat other nations, and how we worship, are tearing our country apart.
The Ancient Greeks had at least four words for love: Eros, intimate or passionate love; storge, the affection between parents and children; philia, friendship; and agape, selfless love that’s extended to all people. The first three types of love are pretty straightforward, but agape can be more mysterious.
Agape, the way Christians use it, is the love of God for God’s children, and also God’s children for God. This includes what Jesus taught us with his human life about selflessly loving all people.
Empathy of spirit. That’s a hard one in our world. But it begins with letting in the understanding of all of God’s children and moving forward in directions of agape, selfless love.
Come get cozy with a book and some art at the Meridian Library!
And check out the Featured Art on my website!