How do you depict the intangible thing that is faith?  What does it look like?  Does it carry any of the flavor of past efforts to visually represent the same invisible thing?

Rob Matthews has found some workable ways to approach those questions.  I have similar questions, but need to keep working on my approach.

[…and…is this….who I think it is?]

[….David says I’m not crazy.  What a relief.]

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To do:

1)  start generating a checklist of essential qualities of my artwork:

humor

detail or complexity

faith/religion/worldview?

paint?

hyperliteracy or narrative

puzzles?

references to people (or figures)?

intensity of effort/technique/focus?

2) come up with ways to keep myself from falling into the same old traps all the time

getting so completely introspective that the products are irrelevant or decorative

personal vs. private

committing to the idea too soon

3) read even more

Agnes Martin

[David B. suggests Turkle’s “What Makes an Object Evocative?” as well]

4) draw

j suggested the same thing time and time again.  The painting takes forever, so draw it the heck out until I have a better idea of what would be worth all that effort.