grace stories

“Grace Stories” is a project in learning to see the work of light, both in the literal and figurative senses. As I sit with my model, I’m attempting to understand the visible effects of light and shadow. I look at how light lays on the planes of his or her face, and try to translate that into a collection of color patches. This pursuit of a new way of seeing became a spiritual practice when I noticed its similarity to opening my eyes to God’s presence in the world. As Donald Miller said, “God is like light: you can’t see light, you see what it touches.” Slowly, subtleties and surprise colors emerge.

This ongoing project, inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, weaves together these concepts with a series of both portraits and stories. I hope that as we recognize pieces of ourselves, we see that each of us is a fascinating work of art, all with stories worth telling.

photo credit: Will Fryar [willfryar.com]