2024 was a wonderful year in my studio. I had the opportunity to create a variety of artwork for both paying clients and my own enjoyment. 

Each year I take a moment to look back and reflect on the work. This is a good spiritual practice. Visual art is part of the way that I connect with God. As I reflect on the various pieces I can remember where I was and what was happening at that time I was creating and ask, “what was God doing in and through me with this piece?”

I hope you enjoy this collection of art as much as I enjoyed creating it. More importantly, I hope it helps and inspires you into deeper reflection and spiritual growth. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions about content or technique. What is your favorite piece?

Happy scrolling!

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Bible | Animation | Oil Painting |  Faces | Plen Air | Live Art | Contemplative Art

gouache sketch in my square watercolor sketchbook

I asked God to give me a word this year that would guide me. The word that came was SEEK. It came on January 1 as I embarked on a spiritual quest to do a daily devotional doodle all year. Below is the first page of the journal. You will see how the word came to me.

I kept up this daily practice all year. I missed a few days, but managed to produce over 300 daily devotional doodles. I compiled them all in the gallery link below. I hope you find inspiration in these little drawings.

The Art Pastor was born this year!

There was a huge shift in my mental framework this year. I worked with a company called TidyCo Creative and they helped me realize that my ministry is best described under the title The Art Pastor. This brings all the facets of my work–visual art, pastor, Bible nerd, professor of spiritual formation–under one umbrella. Now, when you go to artpastor.com it pulls together stevethomason.net and cartoonistbible.com into seamless whole. It has been super fun to explore this new moniker. You can join The Art Pastor’s Network HERE and join others who seek to explore spirituality and scripture through visual art and creativity.

Many evenings I unwind by grabbing a sketchbook or my iPad selecting a random face from my Pinterest collection and drawing it. Enjoy some of these faces…

11″ x 14″

face study

oil on linen panel

I was able to get outside to sketch and paint a little bit this year. I love trying to capture a moment in real time.

We have a monthly practice at Luther Seminary called Why Jesus? in which we invite people to give testimony to why they are a Christian and what difference Jesus makes in their lives. I was asked to preach on the same topic this summer, so I put together these images. View them all HERE.

I had two courses published on Faith+Lead Academy this year. Click the images to explore them.

The two images below represent one of the ways I feel called to minister as the Art Pastor. I like to take either a passage of scripture or a theological concept and draw it. I think this method of communication connects with people in a different way than text alone.

I did a couple animation pieces for the Loving God with Our Mind course…

Every Friday at 4:00pm Central Time I go live on YouTube and Facebook to create a piece of art in real time either in Procreate of Photoshop. This has been a really fun contemplative practice for me. I’m so thankful for those who have participated and shared the work that they have created along with me. I’d love to have you join us. Find the archives HERE.

Below are some pieces I created during a livestream.

I will often draw zentangles as a way to relax and practice contemplation. Below are a few that I did this year that I thought turned out really interesting.

WOW! You made it to the end of my reflective gallery. If you enjoy my art you can see it in real time on Instagram. My handle is @steveartpastor

Happy New Year!