How Much More?, 2023
Linoleum Block on Handmade Paper, 8”x10”
Purpose is what drives us to do what we do. Without it, we feel lost. One important element of purpose is creation, when we know why we were created or how or who created us we feel secure. Another motivation towards our purpose is love—the idea of loving what we are doing and loving each other. Thinking about creation implies a creator. There is almost more intimacy in the process of creation than there is in the final product. I wanted to explore this concept through this piece. To do this I thought a lot about suspension of meaning and letting the process inform my result. To do this I started with what I knew I wanted to do, make paper. The process of making paper is tedious and long. I made a lot of pieces that were unusable and even more that were just barely good enough. It taught me however that when we invest in something we love it so much more. Even upon completion of this work, I found myself more proud of the paper that I made than the image on the paper. Another thing I learned through the process of making a paper was how important each step of the process is. I had to to complete each step with delicacy for the final result to look good, this is true in life as well. We should cherish each step and treat them the same to get the fullness out of what we are doing.
As for the image on the paper, it was inspired by a verse in the Bible which says:
28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
We are taken care of. We will be ok if we just keep doing what we are doing and treat the seasons of our lives well. The hands show that there is someone with us always, on a bigger scale than we can even imagine. He is so much more proud of us than what we do.
