getting in touch with the artist in me

i spent last weekend in seaforth nova scotia at the stunning home of john and judith brannen. i was amongst a group of students, staff, and alumni that gathered at their home over the weekend to talk about art, art as expression of ourselves and our relationship with God, to play with different medians and to just be together. this was a treasured time - a time carved out to focus on the creative that the Creator placed in each of us.

for many drawing and painting are not regular means, if ever, that we use to express ourselves. i have dabbled in the past with oil painting and water colours, and took various art classes in elementary school, and high school and through community learning classes. but i never really had the vision or patience to pursue painting beyond the classroom. there is something about a blank canvas that really scares me, and had trouble seeing the finished result in the midst of the process. the underpainting was often so boring or hideous that i failed to see the beauty of the painting when all the layers and colours came together... this kind sounds like some how us look at life and present circumstances, isn't it?? i wanted the finished product with one stroke of the brush.

as i played with water colours one morning and just kept plugging away, attempting to create shadow and capture light... mixing colours and brushing them onto the paper and carefully blending them until i had my desired result i began to feel to relaxed and released my perfectionist desire to have perfect results right away. i left nova scotia on sunday convinced that i needed to buy some basic supplies for water colour painting but after some thought and refelction upon all that is on my plate right now, and considering my personalty of jumping into things sometimes too quickly, i have put off buying any supplies until i have cleared some thing off my to do list!

i also left nova scotia wondering how i am expressing myself through my photography when i am focused on human subjects. how is taking someone's picture an expression of who i am and my relationship with God? the answer is easy really, but until i asked myself that question i had never given it much thought, as i rarely refer to myself as an artist! the fact is, i love people. i frequently experience moments of awe and wonder when i reflect on how unique and extraordinary people are. i remember going to bodyworlds when it was in vancouver bc and being so amazed at how intricate the physical body is - there was this display that showed all the nerves in a body. there hanging in a case was every single nerve in one person's body fully intact to themselves but completely separated from the rest of the body - sounds gross i know, but wow!! and what about the mind - what is the mind, the place where memories are held and how those memories can evoke emotion in a person, and vice versa.  and how does all this affect the way we love each other, hurt each other, take care of each other, think of one another...

i am incredibly fascinated by the greatest creation ever - the human person, especially because christian tradition says that we are all made in His image. by working with people and creating great experiences with them i am expressing myself - my curiosity through my photography, and by being so in awe of His creation, and wanting to know people and affirm their identity through photographing them, i am simply worshipping the Creator!!! wow. this convinces me even more that i am doing what i was meant to!

here are some images from the weekend that i believe tells the story of our time together...

mmm. dinner!

during our photography workshop.

a snapshot of some of the water color paintings created by the group - mine is the "portrait of an apple" in the center!

a close up of judith's workspace.

sharing communion together and reflecting upon "the imagination."

the group getting a little tour by ssu alumni leland maerz of the eastern shore - one of the fastest eroding coast line in the world

a little self-portrait in charis' lens!