It is early on Saturday morning as I write these words. Holy Saturday. Jesus is in the tomb. The horror of his crucifixion still rips through our memory like an open wound. Silence.
It is a time for reflection.
I would like to take a moment to reflect in gratitude to God and to Pastor Jennifer Grangaard of Luther Seminary and to Pastor Kris Capel of Nokomis Heights Lutheran Church for inviting me to use my gifts and passion for visual arts to help people enter in to this Lent and Holy Week.
A Short Recap of the Journey
It began on Ash Wednesday at Luther Seminary
I created a piece of art live during the Chapel service at Luther Seminary. You can watch the service HERE. Read the sermon and find visuals HERE.
Six Weeks of Livestream Contemplative Art Experiences
I partnered with our campus Pastor at Luther Seminary this Lent to do a little experiment. Every Monday night at 7:00pm I went live on Facebook and YouTube to create a piece of art around the scriptures from the Revised Common Lectionary and the theme word that Pastor Jeni chose for that week. I drew in Photoshop while Pastor Jeni facilitated the online chats.
It was a fun and contemplative way to settle into each week of Lent. Learn more about it HERE.
Enjoy this playlist
It Ended with Good Friday…It is Finished.
Pastor Kris invited me to do live art during the Good Friday Service at Nokomis Heights Lutheran Church. I sent her these ten thumbnail sketches. She chose number seven.
As I pondered the composition I was struggling with the hand. So, I asked Lona to model for me. Yes, she has been my go-to model for over 35 years! Thanks, Lona!
Pastor Jeni helped me transport the easel and canvas from Luther Seminary to Nokomis Heights on Wednesday of Holy Week. Thanks, Pastor Jeni!
This photo was taken moments before the service started. The texture of this canvas was a happy little accident. I used white primer to cover over another Good Friday painting I had done in charcoal a few years ago. The charcoal mixed with the primer and made this lovely textured gray underpainting.
Here is the final piece in context. The service lasted about an hour. I finished at about the 50-minute mark. That was nice to be able to ponder the finished image during the song “Were You There” and the final reading.
Special thanks to Greg for providing the lighting during an otherwise very dark service.
A closer view of the final piece. I ended up using a combination of lecturer’s chalk for the color, charcoal sticks for the blacks, and gesso for the gray tones and to add a little substance to the figures. Live art is so raw. It fits well for Good Friday.
Final Thoughts
Thank you for reflecting on this journey with me. We wait on this Holy Saturday. We sit vigil with the disciples on the Sabbath, waiting to return to the tomb after sunrise tomorrow…the eighth day. Unlike those first disciples, we know what we will find.
The tomb is empty!
…but that is a celebration for tomorrow.
