Praying through Artmaking

Abstract Alana Sawrey is a Brisbane-based artist who often uses whimsical characters to explore thoughts and ideas. This article examines recurring archetypes throughout her portfolio (2012–2024) through a heuristic art-based research methodology of imaginal dialogue. This process is often used in art therapy to personify inanimate objects for conversation and to explore meaning. In this project, the two researchers analyse Sawrey’s imaginal dialogues with 14 symbols to probe the place of artmaking in a Pentecostal aesthetic expression, particularly as a form of visual prayer language.