This past month has seen me make a start on studying for a Masters in Fine Art at Oxford Brookes University. Over the past year, I was investigating courses at a number of universities within commuting distance of home, comparing their different courses and emphases, attending open days to get a sense of place, and meeting staff. Through that process, it was clear that Oxford Brookes was the place for me, not least because it enabled me to study part time over two years while continuing to work on icon commissions and wider ministry. So, a couple of weeks ago, I began my weekly commute to Headington, arrived on what locals described as one of the wettest days they could remember (!), and found my way to the art faculty.
Since then, I have been following the pattern of weekly reading, timetabled seminars and pondering my responses to set questions, all without too much difficulty (though I refuse to get started here on tackling the traffic in Oxford!). Yet, these early stages have not been without challenge. As I approached writing this blog, the verse from Scripture that has kept coming back to me is from the Psalms.
How could we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land? (Psalm 137.4)
I am no stranger to further study yet I suddenly realised that my previous experiences were all within considerably smaller student bodies. I find myself now in a place populated by huge numbers of students, with a wealth of options for where to eat, sit and study. Even the art books in the library are found in three distinct places across two floors. I have yet to find a quiet space, a place simply to be, a place and a way to be myself. These early weeks have thus been about getting going, keeping up, and moving forward in some way or another, yet all the while feeling as if I don't really belong there at all. This sense of having been cast adrift was shared by God's people in exile as they found themselves by the now famous "rivers of Babylon". Even this week's set reading connected with my experiences, as it considered issues of home and exile in a digital age.
All creatures orient to home. It is the point of origin from which every species sets its bearings. Without our bearings, there is no way to navigate unknown territory; without our bearings, we are lost.
[Zuboff, Shoshana, 1951-. The age of surveillance capitalism : the fight for the future at the new frontier of power ]
So how and where do we find our bearings when in unfamiliar territory? A few months ago, my blog post reflected on my rootedness in Benedictine spirituality, with its emphasis on stability and the prompt for me to rediscover that. I have continued to read the Rule of Benedict on a daily basis (or near enough) since that post, and it has been a timely reminder of where I find solid ground. Having to adjusting my studio routine to fit around university still feels unfamiliar but the studio itself has been a place of firm foundation, the quiet space for which my soul longs. This has been especially true, given that my latest commission is of Christ Pantocrator (the term means "almighty" or "ruler over all"). To return from time in Oxford to gaze upon the face of Christ is all the reminder I need.
I am reminded that through the discernment process at the beginning of the year, I was sure that it was part of my calling as a sacred artist to step into the unknown through this MFA course. And where God calls, God also equips. Chapter 7 of St Benedict's Rule deals with questions of humility and obedience, and the fourth step of humility deals expressly with times of challenge. As Joan Chittister says in her wonderful commentary on the Rule:
It is so easy to say, "Let God be the center of your life, do God's will; see God's will in the will of others for you." It is outrageous to say, even under the best of conditions, that it will be easy.
So, this current season is posing its challenges, while all the time reminding me that I do not do this alone. Each of us faces difficulty and periods of instability in life at different times and in various ways. No matter what, it is Christ who is ruler over all, who reaches out to hold us by the hand, Christ who is the one to command the winds and the waves: "Peace, be still".
News
It was a great joy last week to deliver my completed commission icon of Ss Mary & Martha with Christ to its new owner. This icon is not traditionally within the Orthodox canon so there are relatively few good examples to work from. It offered me, therefore, a wonderful opportunity to create a design that reflected the various themes of this encounter, with its balance of busy-ness and stillness before Christ. A wonderful way in which to sanctify the task of wiping up the dishes!
As I have written above, I am getting on with my latest commission, with five more already lined up. If you are interested in commissioning an icon, I am now booking for mid-2025. Prices start from £195. Do get in touch if you have a project in mind.
This week also saw the arrival of the latest batch of greetings cards from my printers, with three new designs based on the icons that I completed while in residency at Cirencester parish church: Compassion (5"x7"); Mary with Christ Child - Eleousa (A6); and St Aldhelm of Malmesbury (A6). The first two designs are already on their way to St Clare's at Coventry Cathedral or you can order any of them directly from me (£2.50 for A6; £3 for 5"x7" - plus P&P at cost).
I am also delighted to be able to offer a print of my recent icon in the Coptic style, depicting Mary with the dead Christ, entitled "Compassion" (translated from the Italian, la Pietà ). I am grateful to Fadi Mikhail (who taught me techniques of Coptic iconography and from whose design I worked for this icon) for giving his permission to reproduce my work in this way. This giclée print is on high quality bamboo art paper, and mounted ready to fit a 12"x10" frame of your choice. There are currently only ten available, at £45 (plus £4 P&P to UK mainland, if applicable). Do drop me a message if you'd like one (click here)
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