Voyage

Voyage
©2021 Ruth Borges
acrylic on canvas

Voyage is a collection of four 10”x10” canvases. In the photo above, clockwise, are Flight, Passage, Trek, & Journey. This multicolor foursome of interlocking jewel tone shapes came together as I blended colors into each other to create more colors. Before I started the paintings, I created six simple thumbnail sketches in black and white (also referred to as notans) to divide the positive and negative space. They provided the foundation for building more complex compositions. 

Notans

In my studio, working through stages

While I love to travel, I wasn’t thinking of about that while I was painting. I was creating shapes on the go with no plan except for the initial notans. The process felt meditative and therapeutic. I was deep diving into intuitive compositions, alternating from one canvas square to another, mixing colors, and adding shapes next to each other. After all four were completed, I reviewed each one individually. One reminded me of a bird, so I titled it Flight. The dark shape in the other made me think of a passage in outer space or somewhere in the depths of the sea. I named it Passage. The third one prompted by thoughts about hiking is titled Trek. The fourth one, Journey.

No other layers of meaning surfaced until recently, as I reviewed them again. I wanted to know God’s thoughts on the paintings so I simply asked Him, “what are these about?” He helped me understand that no matter where we go or how we get there, He is there with us. Immediately, Psalm 139 came to mind. I couldn’t remember the verse numbers but I remembered the content. The verse address I was looking for was Psalm 139:7-10 “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.” Not only is He with me wherever I go, He’s holding me by His right hand, guiding me faithfully, even when I’m not aware of it.

I may not understand the reasons for God’s timing, but I know it’s perfect. This layer of meaning regarding God’s omnipresence was revealed four years after the paintings were completed. And all I had to do was ask and believe He would help me understand. Why didn’t I ask before though, like right after the paintings were done? I don’t know. Perhaps I went straight into other projects and was not going to be present and ready to receive the answer. But, who knows. Still, I’m amazed and grateful for the revelation, and to share it with you.