Sanctity
Sanctity explores how spirituality and symbolic imagery can function as a form of protection. Situated within the broader project theme of armor, this piece considers how spirituality can serve as a form of emotional or psychological armor. Inspired by cathedral windows and iconographic paintings from the Pre-Raphaelite era, the mixed media artwork presents a contemporary portrait framed within an arched faux stained glass structure.
The piece was constructed inside of a 16x20 shadow box lined with LED lighting to create a glow in the background. Glass paint, hot glue, and puff paint were applied directly to the back of the glass panel to imitate how real stained glass appears. The central figure was painted onto the front of the glass panel in several layers. Lighting plays a central role in the piece. The LED strip lights, when illuminated, intensify the colors of the portrait, and allows the skin to appear as if glowing. This use of lighting acts symbolism, proposing that spiritual presence and inner light act as a form of armor that protects the Self. Additionally, the lighting allows the artwork to be viewed both at day and night time.
Sanctity reimagines traditional religious imagery through the lens of contemporary mixed media.
In starting this piece, I first drew out a concept. The piece deviated from the concept as I began experimenting with the puff paint and glass paint. I found the medium easy to use, but also found it difficult to create even and straight lines. I found that after the medium dried, it was easy to scrape it off of the glass and redraw the lines how needed. After sketching the figure with black acrylic paint onto the front of the glass panel, I painted several layers of white paint onto the back to give a plain surface to paint over. I decided to leave most of the hair somewhat transparent, so that the light could shine through. Overall, if I could make any changes, I would have explored more colors within the stained glass sections.