A friend told me about a project or exercise for Lent that they’d seen online.  I didn’t really have a reference for this, but it gave me an idea for doing something similar with a group of friends.  In my projects I like to use paint made from common and organic things like coffee, ash, ground pigments.  I’d planned to burn some papers, palm leaves, flowers, some that were beginning to crumble.  I hoped I’d have a good amount of ash to use for paint.  However it was so windy outside that I nixed that plan.  Maybe it was because I was in a hurry to leave that it didn’t occur to me to burn these things in my fireplace.  In the end, we resorted to using  papers.  

I have done this type of project in the past.  One writes on a board or paper and then covers it up with other papers, paint or other medium.   It is done for the purpose of letting go or coping with something difficult.  Or for setting intention.   

This is one I did a couple of years ago after the loss of someone I cared for as a brother.  Instead of writing on a board and covering it up,  I wrote on hand painted papers.  For this one I painted a background.  Then I painted another paper in with red paint.. and wrote on it with a white marker.   Another paper I painted pink.  I then cut out feather shapes from the papers and arranged them hoping they’d resemble wings.  I didn’t turn out as I’d imagined, but it was more about the writing process and working through the intention rather than creating an art piece.   The words … love, pure, love… was a description of Mother Teresa.  I am a Benedictine Oblate.  My oblate name is Sr. Hildegard, thus the added words and images.  White dots in my art represent prayers.  

Winged Heart

The projects my group worked on had a little different intention since we are in the season of Lent.  Again writing was involved.  It could be what we need to let go of, what grieves us, etc.  Papers where then torn and glued with the beautiful side up, writing hidden as a symbol of leaving it behind.  

For mine I used a grey ink color that resembled the color of ashes.   I did add the small amount of liquid ash on the bottom.  I added just a few lines to indicate the bodice of a colorful dress, maybe one meant to be an Easter dress.