Artist Statement
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Pandemical Drawings: Satan is a Punk and God is Funny
are about the circumstances that led me to express the dueling factions of fear that comes from Satan, and Peace that comes from God.
To whet your appetite: these are just some of the titles that have revealed themselves to me after the making of my dirtily smudged oil-based crayon, pastel covered, color-packed, pencil Pandemical Drawings.
Mullet Farm
Combover Jesus
Is That Satan Talking to Me?
When Mockers Unite
Scripture AKA: Peace as a Fuzzy Ball
Satan is a Punk and God is Funny
We have stacks of art history with old, jaw-dropping aesthetics and a sprinkling of contemporary artists that address or have addressed biblical themes, but on record have not professed their faith. In my case, I am a hard-core Bible thumper, in the best sense of the term and I want people to know the true and personal God that exists. Not the one that exists in politics or from the annoying neighbor that no one can relate to, or the impersonal universe or the often, crazed street sign preachers.
The fear that Satan had produced in me finally angered me enough that I chucked him off my back like a miserly, little weasel which you can see in the form of a puffy pillow. My lack of understanding of Satan and God as separate, and definitely not equal, entities are a large part of the expression represented in these drawings.
I am working within a tradition that started with artists from the first century depicting Biblical themes. They started the long history of symbols and representation that we have today. Some symbols in my drawings have remained similar, but most have been severely altered for effect. For example: the round, gold, and glowing halos were replaced with square, arrow and dot crested halos, fully rendered humans in centuries old traditions of oil painting have been replaced with crudely drawn, multi-limbed, stick figures.
My main goal is to make Biblical images relevant for me, I’m tired of seeing elderly Bible images for a previous era. I also want people to see humor and my familiarity with God, while still showing a deep reverence for a Holy God. At the beginning of each drawing session, I would imagine each Bible topic from my perspective with a humorous, fresh, silly, embarrassing, or childlike perspective. Each week, I tried to heal myself from the horrors of the Pandemic. Drawing became my therapist, so I had to do the work with God and hold nothing back. When you can see God, like the Apostles did, you can know God better. So, it is my paradoxical, lifelong task to make God visible, even though He is not at this time in history.
Can you imagine how crazy it would be if the sky opened up and God spoke audibly? Bananas, to be sure.
PDM 2023