"Magnificat"
Acrylic on Fabriano Artistico Paper 22x30"
Today is my mother's 90th birthday. I've been calling her pretty much every night since my dad died eleven years ago. I stayed with her those first days after his death, sleeping in his spot on their queen-sized bed. We held hands that first night, as we talked through all that had happened. She needed me and I needed her.
I am the only daughter with four brothers. All good men. We promised dad we'd take care of her. When I left a few days after the funeral, I kept thinking that one of the hardest parts in losing her mate of 56 years, would be going to bed alone without the pillow talk. And so every night since, after she is tucked in, we talk. How I wish I had recorded some of the things we talked and laughed about. Eleven years. What a gift our conversations have been, whether trivial or deep.
And so, with this painting about Mary, "Magnificat"*, I think about mothers and the miracle that is their children. I know my brothers would agree that we hit the jackpot with the mother we have. She is loving, real, witty, slightly naughty but in a good way and full of the vinegar. But mostly, she is grace. Happy Birthday, Mom.
This painting is a part of my new exhibit which is opening Oct. 29 at Bethlehem Lutheran, South Minneapolis. It is a visual interpretation of Arvo Pärt's Magnificat Antiphonen & Nunc Dimittis. If you can't make it to the exhibit, you can see it and listen to the music that inspired it at RobynSandAnderson.com under the "Magnificat" tab. The lyrics are on the right of each painting and a link to the music underneath each painting. Click on the play button first to hear the music that inspired the painting, then click on the art to enlarge it.
I am the only daughter with four brothers. All good men. We promised dad we'd take care of her. When I left a few days after the funeral, I kept thinking that one of the hardest parts in losing her mate of 56 years, would be going to bed alone without the pillow talk. And so every night since, after she is tucked in, we talk. How I wish I had recorded some of the things we talked and laughed about. Eleven years. What a gift our conversations have been, whether trivial or deep.
And so, with this painting about Mary, "Magnificat"*, I think about mothers and the miracle that is their children. I know my brothers would agree that we hit the jackpot with the mother we have. She is loving, real, witty, slightly naughty but in a good way and full of the vinegar. But mostly, she is grace. Happy Birthday, Mom.
This painting is a part of my new exhibit which is opening Oct. 29 at Bethlehem Lutheran, South Minneapolis. It is a visual interpretation of Arvo Pärt's Magnificat Antiphonen & Nunc Dimittis. If you can't make it to the exhibit, you can see it and listen to the music that inspired it at RobynSandAnderson.com under the "Magnificat" tab. The lyrics are on the right of each painting and a link to the music underneath each painting. Click on the play button first to hear the music that inspired the painting, then click on the art to enlarge it.