Featured Image: Detail from “Night of Wonder” – Oil on Canvas, 5′ x 6′, by Mark Hillis
Early Memories That Shape Us
Childhood can have a profound impact upon our artistic expression. As I get older, I think about images and emotions that run deep in the heart and memory. I recall images from several places. These include my father’s country store, the beach, the mountains, and the woodlands around our home. Of course, there is also the pond—the fish pond where I spent so many happy times. I have vivid recollections of family fishing outings. I remember paddling my grandfather around in the boat while he fished. Evenings when the moon shone full and bullfrogs croaked are also vivid in my memory. Their deep-throated bass notes echoed through the woods around the pond.
The Sacred Space of the Pond
Ah, those teenage years. Everything in the heart, the mind, and the body was in stormy turmoil. I would go to the pond to be alone. I went there to pray and to think. These things forged memories that are indelible.
The Painting from which the detail, above, is taken is called “Night of Wonder”. It is an attempt to capture something of the wonder of that special place.
“Night of Wonder” – Capturing Memory on Canvas
The pond is a recurring theme in my art and my dreams
A place of childhood memories, of boyhood wonder
Of awe and curiosity…of lights shining on the water, of fireflies, and hours spent staring at the stars shining through the trees at night.
A place of intense wonder.
The pond was, however, something much more than these things.
I was also the place of many baptisms, including my own and my three sons.
And so all of these aforementioned things take on deeper significance,
for It is where I received my portion of the light of Christ…
Symbolism in “Night of Wonder”
In this painting I am the little boy beholding the natural glory of the lights on the pond at night…but it is symbolic of the awe and wonder of beholding the glory of the Lord, from my childhood baptism forward.
The lights in the tree speak of the glory of God in Christ, who is the Tree of Life….the lanterns, His light and glory. are far greater than my small lantern in the scene.
Though we become mature sons and daughters of God, I’m still that little boy by the pond, standing in awe of the Lord and His great truths. His Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.
Your Journey: A Creative Challenge
A Challenge: Begin to identify some of the “symbolic”, yet very powerful images from your childhood…and think about their impact upon your life. Think about how you might paint those things in such a way as to convey something of the Truth that you have come to know in Christ.
Pray over this as a project, and begin to sketch out the “vision” that comes from those images.
Leave your comments,
Blessings,
Mark