Prophetic Art
What is prophetic art? I know it is powerful and for me it is an avenue to connect with God. As I grow as an artist in the church, I find myself tapping into the mysterious realm of prophetic art. Have you ever been in a coffee shop to meet with a good friend? The atmosphere is calm, open and warm. Conversations are happy, emotional and best of all comforting. When I am listening to the worship music and allowing myself to be absorbed into the canvas, I try to remove myself. I am removing my thoughts from making the decisions. Rather, I am allowing God to paint through me. It is better to understand that I am not the artist, God is. Focusing to listen is challenging especially when I can be so head strong. Maybe this is why God has drawn me to listen, paint, and reveal his mighty messages.
The painting here is titled, “Revealed.” Romans 8:18 came to me as I decided a title for this piece. I previously knew that this work would be named “Revealed,” but as I searched the bible about what it says about revealing I found this appropriate verse. The verse reads, “for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.” As I begin to dissect this piece by explaining my thought process and what I believe it means, understand
that God is always one step ahead. What I believe this work means might be interpreted differently by you. This is God working through me for you.
To begin, I started this piece thinking that I was going to stick with a more neutral and minimal color scheme. As you can see God had other plans. I first used a light brown wash all over the canvas but then I saw a curtain. This curtain was draped to the side and it was red. Red is such a strong, powerful and bold color. Could this represent the blood of Christ and how his sacrifice opened up our true potential? A few weeks passed before I dove back into the canvas. However, I knew that the background was going to be abstract, chaotic and non-representational. I added thick paint with the palette knife rather than a brush. My colors were bright and unmixed but I felt that black and gray needed to make their presence among the brightness of color. You see the background could be a field of flowers opening up to a new year’s spring or a summertime landscape in the country. Nevertheless, it is mysterious, so much so that it resembles life. Life has happiness, joy and love but there are also moments of darkness, uncertainty and fear. Maybe this is a representation of our spirit?
I intended to paint the colorful background down the canvas but God was halting me in doing so. I was inclined to leave an empty, organic shape. I had no clue what it was going to be or what it represented. As the week passed God gave me the vision of an open purple geode sitting in the blank space. When I returned to the painting and finished the geode, I got the word “revealed.” Geodes on the outside, before they are cracked open, are dull and they simply just blend in with their surroundings. However, their beauty and unique crystals are not revealed until the rock is split open. Perhaps this geode represents another aspect in our lives of your potential and your worth in this world. It is not until you truly discover that pure amazing relationship with our Father that you realize your power, which is NOT found in religion.
Tori Chamberlain