Wednesday Afternoon: The Tree of Life

It may seem that this project has been going forever, but that’s ok.  Very gradually the branches of the tree are reaching up to the outside edges…the bubbles are being developed with layers of paint and the angels are one-by-one embellished with marks that create a bridge with the background.  Today was the first day that I felt as though this major project is almost completed.  I have really enjoyed having Marilyn join me on my afternoons in the St. Anne’s room.

 

I felt excited as we worked this afternoon…time flew and everything seemed freeing where the paint was concerned.  As a result, I left the church later than I had planned.  I was looking forward to the Confirmation this evening, of 90 grade six students.  I’ve been keeping a number of those students in my heart and prayers as I’ve painted on the wall this past month.  Their names are on the wall.

Tuesday’s Collage:Tree of Life

Rooted In the Tree of Life

Ongoing progress on the mural…this is a very time-intensive phase of the project.  I have about 20 pages left of the second cycle of liturgical readings and then the entire third cycle to apply.  Last Tuesday I had thought I was coming to the end of the third cycle.  S’ok. First,  I’m giving the base of the tree the visual weight required to create a sense of strength and rootedness.  The third cycle of readings will be used to develop the branching in a very filigree sort of approach.

Detail With Exposed Reading

 

The process feels similar to other detail work like knitting, embroidery or weaving.  The work is very painstaking, but ultimately the project shows quality and care.

Names of the Baptized: Included Slowly Over Time

To This Point: Two Hundred Names

 

The beginnings of layered scripture will also create depth and meaning in the piece, all connected with the themes of ‘naming’ and ‘baptism’ as I explore the notion of our inheritance.  It was a beautiful and contemplative time in the St. Anne’s room.  I thought of my own children throughout the afternoon.

Scriptural Passage: Matthew 28: 19

Tuesday’s Collage:Resurrection Tree

I’m back to work on the wall in the St. Anne’s Room of St. Albert the Great Church.  This is the space where mothers bring their babies to nurse them or to comfort them when they are crying.

Inscribed on the wall will be over a thousand names of the baptized.  Presently, that process is on hold while I apply, in collage, the three complete cycles of the liturgical readings.

Angels in Branches

The readings represent the stories of our faith and so I had a sense that they needed to be in the piece.

Cycle B

I hope that my readers will enjoy following the process of this mural to its completion