This current exhibition, Truth Continues, investigates the body as experience, strength and without the confinement of flesh. The paintings consist of abstracting the human body with materials and marks. Although the paintings are abstracted pieces, the body is present. The flesh has been erased or removed. The soul, mind and strength are the focus. The paint covers Biblical text and imagery. The abstracted forms are foregrounded in the picture plane and truth is revealed.
Many of these pieces have Biblical text written underneath and then covered with material. This process for me was to not only bring the Word of God into my art practice, but to also research the meaning of the body in faith and art as it pertains to my relationship with God. This work allowed me to meditate on the Word as part of my art practice.
The body of Christ is the center of each piece, the utmost importance of the Crucifixion, the Resurrection and the Holiness of Christ's lived life and his union with God and the Holy Spirit in the Trinity. The work Communion, Truth, ordeal and distress focus on the Crucifixion of Christ, while Redemption focuses on Christ's sacrifice, the diptych Finally represents the truth of Christ's reign. Each piece was deliberately created to examine the Life, Death and Resurrection of Christ. The diptych to the Mountain is a response to the understanding and truth of Christ as Savior. The rest of the work is a response to the application or action that the Scriptures inspire and instruct. To love, to obey, to hope.
Hope is a major influence for this work. Bodies are, for the most part, fragile. Bodies fail. Bodies break, bodies leave. But the hope that fills these bodies never leaves. C.S. Lewis' chapter, titled Hope, in his book, Mere Christianity, was a huge influence on this work. He puts into perspective of the eternal hope and how that hope in Christ transcends everyday activities and conflicts. This work was also influenced by the painter, Jackson Pollock, not only his technique of dripping and throwing paint, but his desire to paint. Pollock painted and painted and painted. He was a prolific artist and the process of making was the most important part of his work. I want that kind of passion and enthusiasm in my own practice. I believe in the art of being present and in the art of practice. Conceptual artist, John Baldessari, once stated, "Art comes out of failure. You have to try things out. You can't sit around, terrified of being incorrect, saying, 'I won't do anything until I do a masterpiece.'" And, I believe he is correct. This work I created was made in spite of fear, it was made for the glorification of God. To listen, to hope, to paint.
M.V. Moran recently earned her MFA in Visual Studies from Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon. She has a BFA in Painting from the University of Oregon. She works in Eugene, Oregon.