Marion’s work “I am the Way” is mixed media on wood, 90cm x 60cm.
Artist Statement:
This mixed media relief sculpture contains the message of redemption through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. It is layered with religious symbolism, an attempt to reflect the complexity of our human condition, the depth of God’s love for us and the context of Jesus’ sacrifice.
The panel on which the relief is constructed is a door panel. Jesus said,“ I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father except by me. Knock and the door shall be opened unto you.” John 4:6 and “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20
A key hangs above the three crosses and under the white circle. It is the promise of new life through Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sins.
The three large white triangles represent the Trinity – Father Son and Holy Spirit. They combine to form the shape of a fish, the early symbol for Christianity. These sections create three levels of understanding in the work. The top one being that of Heaven and God’s omnipresence, the middle is Jesus’s place of connection between Heaven and Earth and the lower is our humanity.
The two paper circles relate to the promise of eternal life. The paper suggests vulnerability. The top circle is white representing the purity of God’s love, reinforced by the gold heart in the centre. The protective plastic cover in the shape of a cross symbolizes God’s healing power. The second circle, placed on the central piece of wood is discoloured and misshapen and represents Jesus bearing our sins on the cross.
The three vertical pieces of wood in the middle section represent the three crosses at Calvary. The central one with its four nails, being the one where Jesus suffered and died.
In the bottom triangle are thirty silver-tipped cigarette filters representing the betrayal of Christ and the fallibility of our human condition – sin e.g. addictions, fleshly desires.
Overall the sense of fragility and solidity combine to evoke the frailty of the human condition juxtaposed with the eternal love of God.
“Full Circle”, Mixed media scuplture
Artist Statement
Revelations 22: 13
“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.”
Carved flames represent the Holy Spirit. A powerful hand rises out of the centre of these flames. There is both strength and vitality in these elements. God’s hand holds a glass disk which symbolizes the omnipresence and eternal strength of a loving God…the eternal… alpha and omega.
The small wooden cross, fashioned from an ordinary wooden clothes’ peg is suspended in the centre of the glass circle. As the focal point of the work, it represents the humility and complete surrender of Jesus Christ’s selfless act.
“Three Crosses”, Mixed media Installation
Discarded saw-horse wood become the basis of this work. Three decades had placed a toll on the old plank of wood that had served the carpenter well. Its deeply scarred surface gave witness to its humble role. The fragments were full of strength, colour and texture. My three pieces of discarded wood found new life in a freestanding sculpture representing the three crosses at Calvary. A rusty piece of barbed-wire bound in a circle found its way into the piece as the crown of thorns and rests in between the three vertically placed ‘crosses’.
“Onlookers” is acrylic and monoprint on canvas, 90cm x 60cm
Artist Statement:
John 13:1-15
‘We are a culture of watchers. We have got used to watching nature programs on television and marveling at the wonders of the world from the security and safety of our armchairs. We can press pause at anytime and go and make a cup of tea. We come back and press play and the world performs for us again. Viewers and consumers but not explorers, not people who get their feet wet walking across boggy ground.
We will not be able to touch reality unless we allow it to touch us, to wash over us. Participation – and meditation – is what turns darkness into light and opens the portals of grace.’
Sensing God by Laurence Freeman 2015 pp112-113
This painting has emerged out of my need to understand the many perspectives that individuals have towards Jesus’s death and resurrection. The observer is one that persists in this image.