Lenten Self Reflection Activity
“Daily personal reflection in almost any format can clear the mind of unwanted negativity, freeing us to think creatively, feel more joy, and connect us to God’s will for our lives.”
Dr. Merideth Hite Estevez, founder and Director of Artists for Joy has a wonderful way of connecting thoughtful activities that connect art and faith (no matter what you believe!) While leading a series of dinner church evenings at Kirk in the Hills during Lent to focus on creative spiritual practices for the season she asked me to lead an evening’s activity on self reflection. The experience was positive and therefore I share as it might benefit others.
One way I practice personal reflection is through my daily sketchbook practice. I do this because I believe you are always capable of learning. A sketchbook is a good place to learn what new medium can do or experiment with combining unlikely mediums together. Practice in a sketchbook also allows for artistic freedom. It is a perfect place to create without the pressure of the finished product. Lastly, this type of work loosens me up creatively, charges the muscle memory in my hands and allows God to work in me. It’s no surprise that this open ended activity has often found me solving artistic dilemmas of other work I am creating or given me insight to non art things that are occurring in my life. Below are some examples of my sketchbook pages.
While out of the studio the sketchbook comes along! Inspired by lines and shapes that I see, these “inches” are created as part of my morning practice. **My current sketchbook preference is linked at the bottom of this post.
Currently I am exploring color palettes and the principles of design with acrylic paint.
Each page evolves over several days.
THE WARM UP activity for this activity involves learning the generally accepted proportions artist’s follow when creating a portrait. Let me guide you through the process -
Now that you’ve created a face, what is a self portrait? Why do artists create them? A few thoughts:
to be remembered,
to offer insights into their lives, surroundings and state of mind,
or when interjected into a scene within a piece of art it could be a form of a signature.
Read and ponder this passage from 2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.
Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test?
Jesus is in us! ALL of us. Paul was perhaps using the Corinthians to do a spiritual check up. Likewise, are we recognizing that Jesus is in us? Rev. Marjorie Wilhelmi, upon reflecting upon this passage, suggests the following fitting prayer from John Phillip Newell, Praying with the Earth.
Clear our heart, O God,
that we may see you.
Clear our heart, O God,
that we may truly see ourselves.
Clear our heart, O God,
that we may know the sacredness of this moment
and in every moment
seek you
serve you
strengthen you
as the Living Presence in every presence.
Clear our heart, O God,
that we may see.
After reflecting on the scripture, I invite you to create a self portrait. Some suggestions for process are:
draw right on top of the portrait you made when practicing the proportions above
start your self portrait from scratch referring to the proportion guideline as needed
maybe your self-portrait is not an image of your face. How about a poem, a song, a collage of words or a drawing of an object that tells your story. Here are a few non conventional self portraits to inspire you.
Left - artist unknown, top right -Nikos Lagos, bottom right - Picasso
What did you or your group create? I’d love to see and get feedback on this lesson. Here are a few questions for wrap up -
How do your currently practice set reflection?
What questions did you ask yourself that were prompted by the scripture?
What did creating a self portrait mean to you? What did you notice about yourself?
On the inaugural use of this activity, the tables were supplied with copy paper, crayons, colored pencils, ball point pens and markers. Before we even started, someone commented that the smell of the crayons brought back happy memories! And when the activity was complete we walked around to see what each other had done.— quietly, without commentary or judgment. Several people remarked that they had entered in reluctantly but once they got going they were surprised at how good it felt to be in the midst of a creative process. Below are two results from the class. The one on the right is from someone that I know hasn’t drawn anything but a spreadsheet in many decades. He marveled at what a little structure and guidance could allow him to do. The one on the left was a response to how the creator felt as they walked through their present season of Lent.
All and all I pray that this activity caused the participants to first think about daily personal reflection and how it could impact their life and secondly that the scripture and activity provided self examination.
Need a sketchbook? The one I am currently using (pictured) is the Stillman & Birn Zeta Series Softcover Sketchbook, 5.5" x 8.5.” I bought it because it opens flat so I can easily work across both pages. It has smooth paper that work well with a variety of supplies. I really appreciate that the pages remain smooth despite layering of wet medium. And this size works well for keeping on the side of my work table or desk or slipping into a travel bag. If you are curious to purchase here is an affiliate link. I am an Amazon Associate and I earn a bit from qualifying purchases.
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