Reframing Rain with Art: Finding Joy for Beginner to Professional Artists
Have you ever considered Reframing Rain in your life with art?
Before you disqualify yourself as not being artistic, I hope you will take a look at ways art can add joy to your life whether you are a professional artist or just a beginner.
In Genesis 1:1, the first five words of the Bible are “In the beginning, God created...”
A few verses later in Genesis 1:26 we hear God saying, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…”
If we are made in the image of God who created the heavens and the earth and all things, could it be we hold within us the desire and ability to create too?
Whispers of Fall in colored pencil by Mary Coffill Deveau
Rarely does my life cross paths with someone like me. When I walked through the doors of the Boston Foundation for Sight it was the first time I met people like me (outside of those in my mass radiation accident). Friendships develop quickly with those who understand levels of pain and loss like few others can in your life. On one of my stays there, I met Mary.
Mary Coffill Deveau
Instantly I recognized something special about Mary. Though living with unimaginable pain, there was a joy that radiated out from her. As we got to know each other better, I learned she once owned a newspaper in Nova Scotia called, “The Good News Newspaper.” It featured all the good and encouraging news of the area. It felt like I had met a true sister. Unrelenting eye pain eventually closed the newspaper chapter of her life. This story is about her next chapter.
One day between treatments and exams, Mary shared with me a few beautiful photographs full of detail. She explained they weren't photographs, but actual drawings she had done with colored pencils.
Morning Reflections in colored pencil by Mary Coffill Deveau
When stricken with a rare and painful cornea disease in 2009, most visual things were beyond her grasp. Unable to focus clearly for long periods or to tolerate sunlight and many artificial lights, art became Mary’s reframing grace. Unlike reading and many visual past times, she found art did not require much eye movement, lessening the amount her corneas had to refocus thus lessening the pain. She could only see to draw using magnifiers and indirect lighting but in doing so, she found herself able to become so engrossed in her art that it distracted her from pain, a focal point technique recognized in the medical community as “Purposeful Distraction.”
Ironically, as her ability to tolerate sunlight became limited, that same sensitivity made her more aware of light and tone in artwork. Although very limited as to how much time she can draw daily, she uses this insight to enhance her drawings.
Piercing Eyes in colored pencil by Mary Coffill Deveau
Mary writes, "If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then it seems appropriate, ironic even, that when I draw, it`s all about the eyes. Of all my drawings, this tiger speaks to me the most. His eyes say, “I am fierce. I am strong. I will survive.” Tigers prefer to stay out of sight and hunt at night when it is dark. They fight when they must. I am like a tiger. I thrive at night after the sun has set. When pushed to my limit, I fight.
I am fierce.
I am strong.
I embrace what I can still do.
I leave the rest behind.
You can find more of Mary's story and art linked below.
Reframing Rain with Art:
Tiny Version
Red-Breasted Sap-sucker in watercolor by Lily
When the cloud cover is heavy and the rain drips, I slip outside with Lily, a special high school friend of mine. We walk, talk, laugh, and pray together. One day the Lord delighted us with a surprise visit from a red-breasted sap-sucker.
Lily has the tiniest watercolor journal I have ever seen. It is approximately 1 ½ " x 2". After our rainy walk, she painted the bird in her tiny journal. Days later it was shared online by our local bird shop.
Lily writes, “Art gives me a place to go; it gives me a time to pray and listen to worship music in the midst of my loud, busy world. It gives me peace when I’m stressed out, and something to look forward to when my day is dark.”
You can find more of Lily's art linked below.
Reframing Rain with Art:
Beginner Version
Paint-by-number Sunflower in acrylic by Kellie
Do you have any secret aspirations? I would love to be an artist but can assure you my colored pencils and watercolors don't produce anything that resembles Mary's or Lily's art. So I reframed the dream and ordered a paint-by-number set early on during the pandemic. Like Mary, I can only do a little bit at a time and need to work with a magnifier, but I really enjoy the process. The sunflowers pictured above are my first attempt.
Whether you are a real artist, work in a tiny journal, or start with something like paint-by-numbers I hope you find joy in Reframing Rain with Art.
Reframing Reminder:
Butterfly & Lavender in colored pencil Mary Coffill Deveau
Sometimes when you can't see much,
slowing down and looking closely
helps you see even more.