Weaving is recognized as one of the oldest surviving art forms in the world. Weaving has its roots in both the practical and the artistic. The weave was chosen for our artist collaboration piece because it offers the ability to hold a piece of all of us and display the beauty of our community. Artist Lora Mcgowan constructed the frame and tied yarn lengthwise to hold the materials together. Woven through the yarn are verses from each of the psalms that will be represented in the 2023 Psalms Sermon + Artwork Series. Each of the artists contributed fragments of their artistic process. From paper to cut up canvases, wiping cloths to strips of wood, and film negatives to moss and dried flowers, this tapestry gives you hints of what is to come with the upcoming artwork. 

While artists working in other creative fields such as drama, music, and dance collaborate naturally in community, more often than not visual artists fly solo, creating works of art in their own studios. The nature of our work often necessitates this time alone, however, as followers of Christ we also recognize our need to find community among like-minded souls when possible. For even in the beginning, as it states in Genesis 1:1: “the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the deep…” the original community of the Trinity assembled to begin their very first act of creative collaboration! 

I think most of us artists approached one another with some assumptions about “how this would go”, fearing that others would seek to outdo us or that our own inadequacies would “find us out”.  But we have discovered that as we have sought to find and give support to one another, a door has been opened for us to glimpse ways in which our togetherness can actually be a beautiful and harmonious thing. So creating this collaborative weave with each of the artists felt like a natural way to honor both the individual gifts that we bring to the table, as well as putting on display the beauty of our interwovenness with the Word of God and with each other. 

Lastly, we wish to dedicate this piece to the young creatives in our midst. We remember that many of us struggled through long, early years of believing that the works of our hands could be a beautiful and holy offering to God and to His Bride. The Church has had a complicated history with the artists in her midst, but nevertheless the Church needs you, and you need her. We want to encourage you to see your gifts as good because He who calls you is good. Though it may seem a mystery of what He might do with your future, keep pressing in, keep asking and wondering, and hone your artistry. He is faithful and He will surely use you!  

Artists: Katie Calvert, Derek Cook, Jenna Hurt, Kelly Joyner, Lora Mcgowan, Meghan Medlin, Stephanie Milde, Caroline Taylor, Whitney Todd, Lisa Riccardi.