The Darkness Has Not Overcome

In this work I wanted to meditate on the Forbidden Fruit in the Garden of Eden. I chose pears to represent this reality. I considered the eating of the fruit which led to the curse, then the overturning of the curse through Jesus. I deliberately arranged the still life in a way that I could explore light and dark values using the technique of chiaroscuro (strong contrasts between dark and light) in my painting. The reason for this was because I was thinking about the dark underside of Satan's lie in Genesis 3 which was overcome by the work of Jesus on the cross. The pears are set alongside each other, one whole and one broken echoing the reality that Jesus was broken for us, taking the curse upon himself, so that we can be made whole. 

As the light fell across the fruit there was this sense of redemption, a taste of goodness layered across the fruit, driving the darkness away, reminding me of all that Christ secured for us through his suffering.

I hope that as you gaze upon the pears, one whole, one broken, that you consider all that has been given to us in Jesus. All that was lost has been restored. All that was broken has been made whole. "The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:5)