Faith in Shadows

Faith in Shadows, Oil on Canvas, 36x48, Summer 2006
The title is a play on words a bit. The subject’s name is Faith. The fact that her name is Faith means a lot to me, and probably at this point in her life, she may be still growing in to her name and what it means to her or to others. Her name truly defines her to me. On this particular day, she showed up to class wearing an afro wig. It was a day where my class would be painting self-portraits from life. She explained that she wears it to school once in a while just because. In essence, this is how she approaches most things. I admire that and hope she never loses that. The lighting set-up for the class that day was casting a really big shadow behind her, where she herself was somewhat engulfed in darkness, but her persona was casting far beyond her own reach. She has a strength about her so much so that, though she may choose to remain in the shadows as an onlooker, a light exudes from her effortlessly.

Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.--St. Augustine