|
|
|
|
BODY OF CHRIST at THE DADIAN GALLERY at WESLEY THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Janet MckKenzie, "Woman Offered #5"
First |
Previous Picture |
Next Picture |
Last | Thumbnails
My passion as an artist is the creation
of inclusive imagery usually speaking through the image of women, reminding that
we are all created equally and beautifully in God’s image. I feel just the
attempt to make art is sacred in and of itself regardless of the outcome. My
paintings are pared down to the most basic elements and anything extraneous is
eliminated. The deepest interest I have is in the spiritual journey and our
universal longing for meaning and relevance.
My mother and grandmother were
inspirational forces, although I lost them at an early point in my life. Each
contributed different influences, although they didn’t live long enough to know
that. My mother encouraged determined intellectual expression and my grandmother
inspired unstoppable feminine freedom and expression. They were strong women who
survived hard lives. It gives me a deep sense of gratitude to believe my work is
giving them and other women (as well as myself) a voice to be heard.
At the Millennium my painting, “Jesus of
the People”, was selected winner of the National Catholic Reporter’s global
competition for a new image of Jesus by judge, Sister Wendy Beckett. This
interpretation - dark and modeled by a woman – profoundly infuriated many. My
personal journey with this controversial painting altered my life and affirmed
my commitment to bringing forward art that includes rather than excludes.
My painting at Wesley Theological
Seminary, “Woman Offered #5”, is part of a large series paying homage to women
of color, “African American Women Celebrated”, underwritten by longtime
collectors.
My painting at Washington Theological
Union, “The Electric Chair”, was commissioned in 2007 by
www.livingthequestions.com for Sister Helen Prejean’s DVD series, “Questioning
Capital Punishment”.
I lost my mother and grandmother at an
early point in my life and feel my interest in women, as subjects have to do
with this loss. It gives me hope to think I might be giving them and other
women, as well as myself, a voice to be heard through imagery of women.
|
|
|
The artists who created the works of art shown
on this site own the
copyrights to them. send comments or questions about the gallery to
the curator at: © Copyright 2008 Wesley Theological Seminary
|
