I recently taught an art class and used Numbers 13 as a metaphor of how we are occasionally given a taste of the proverbial Promise Land–the landscape that is brimming with larger-than-life fruits, essentially an offered up abundant life–but once gifted with that glimpse, what do we do with that good news? Do we hoard it in silence? Do we abandon it and chicken-out from fear of the hardships that inevitably preface all worthy ends? OR, do we steadfastly aim North, bravely using our gifts and ability to speak truth to bring this possible reality to fruition?
The role of the artist is often to articulate the beauty, possibility, and even brilliance that is occurring in realtime. Like a translator, in a way. Or, the messenger sent to take a peek at this world’s potential and report back to those that need a tad bit of help recognizing it once in a while. So while some may be content with a traditional bowl of fruit on a pristine dining table, I’ll (try to) continually choose to illustrate a spread of divine variety, color, texture, and quality that is nothing shy of Promise Land standard. Let’s not settle friends, after all, it’s 2021.
9” x12” // watercolor & gouache