Sustaining Grace

This two layer print combines etching and linocut to create one unified piece. By layering these to forms, it allows the etched writing to recede into the background, bringing the starkness of the linocut figure to the foreground. This allows the work to have an effective hierarchy, keeping unity and movement. This piece entitled “Sustaining Grace”, was the closing piece to a set of works, that were working through the idea that God sustains us in our time of need and provides for us in unexpected ways. The etched background of this piece contains snippets from the artists journal entries over the span of a year, while the foreground displays a girl reaching up and grabbing the hand of another person. The goal of this piece was to create a work that externally processed the close of a season in life. Choosing words to fill the background, allows the viewer to delve further into the piece while getting a glimpse of the context and purpose for the significance of the image. Yet it was more of a reflection for the artist than for the viewer. It contrasts this sense of personal despair, and searching, with the hope of a God who sustains and provides in every season. This piece, though personal, allowed the artist to give the viewer a glimpse of how God has worked in her life, with the goal of encouraging others who may be going through something similar.