Defining Holy by Madeline Sellers
Art as Work is pleased to present Defining Holy, an
installation conceived by the Maryland artist Madeline Sellers.
Growing up religious I have had to find and learn the paths
I want to take in my life, and how I can craft my own devotional practices to
keep me going. Defining Holy is a series of artwork depicting things
with a negative stigma – such as medication and my black cat – as something
holy. These things are holy because they have saved me in the past and continue
to do so. What inspired these works was a quote I found: “In the right Heaven-yellow
light, anything can be holy enough to save someone”. I wish for people to be able to see themselves within my work, and find a connection of their own through whatever their background may be. With these photos taken in
Little Baker on McDaniel Campus, I sit my art within the pews. Pews are where
devotion itself takes place; so, portraying my art within a church setting, as
well as displaying them with aspects of my current spiritual practice, I can
convey the right feeling of holiness and worship I wanted to depict. Holy as a
descriptor does not inherently make an object something to be worshipped, but
maybe something that has saved you should be regarded as something higher than
self. Through these paintings I explore
a variety of religious imagery and symbolism. The halo, inspired by depictions
of Mother Mary; the pomegranate, painted in devotion to Persephone; and the omnipresent
eyes, always watching, sometimes judging.
Madeline currently lives and works in Westminster, Maryland.
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