Reflections: Mother & Son explores the intimacy of Mary and her son, Jesus, reflected in two sides of a single halo.

English bible translations read Son of Man, a more accurate translation would be Son of Humanity. Of all born to woman, no one was less the son of “man” than Jesus. Jesus’ conception, without intervention of man, is represented by the sharing of the halo.

Jesus’ birth broke the shackles of patriarchy, a truth not yet appropriated.

The gold threads sewn into the painting carry the divine. They hint of Mary’s encounter with the angel Gabrielle. She risked her reputation. She risked her physical being. She risked being wrong.

Mary’s life was rearranged when she chose favor with God rather than favor with man.

The pods symbolize both beginning and ending. Life and death held in a single entity. Mary is represented by the dry seed pods. They symbolize Mary’s willingness to carry Jesus and launch him into the fullness of his purpose. Motherhood is an endless series of beginning and ending.

Jesus is represented by the thorny leaves of the purple thistle which call to mind the crown of thorns at the crucifixion. In life, the sharp, deep, blue-green leaves harbor and protect the vulnerable creatures that shelter near its roots. The thorny leaves represent Jesus’ life and ministry, thriving along the dry and dusty roads.

Matches, burnt and unlit, accent both halves of the halo. They symbolize light. They symbolize what was and what is yet to be.