From The Banks Of God’s River

God's Kiss, 2021

In the Dark Night, 2021

Spirited Franciscan Inspired Quotes
Clare Gallery
St. Patrick – St. Anthony Church
Hartford
January 17, 2025

I once locked myself in a dark closet and said I was going to pray there until I finally heard the voice of God. Instead, my mother found me asleep, sweating underneath a blanket a few hours later. I’ve still never heard the voice of God, although I feel like I’ve seen the banks of God’s river every now and again.

I thought of my experience with faith when I views In The Dark Night,” one of the pieces on display at my favorite gallery, the Clare Gallery at St. Patrick – St. Anthony Church in Hartford.

Despite the title, the image is quite bright and colorful. I thought that the streaks of light blue, white and aquamarine represented a flame at first, burning eternally as a representation of faith. But when I read the text, the image of a river became clear.

The theme for the gallery this year is Mystery, Mystical, and Meaning,” so it makes sense that the first exhibition would come from Brother Mickey O’Neill McGrath.

This isn’t Brother McGrath’s first showing at Clare Gallery, as he had an exhibit back in 2010 that focused on the stories of the Virgin Mary and the Saints.

This year his exhibit is called Colorful Silence. It features quotes from modern and ancient mystics.”

All Creativity Awakens, 2024

The sunflower on the all-black background drew me to All Creativity Awakens.” The message about creativity resonated with me as well, as an on-again-off-again fiction writer. There have been moments when I sat down to write a story, and I feel the tension building in my body. My heart begins to race. It’s those moments where I get closest to the darkness in myself- the things I want to hide from the outside world, and even from myself. I can feel that’s where the creativity that John O’Donohue, a Catholic priest from Ireland, describes. But it’s frightening to go into that space, so I always turn back.

Woman at the Well, 2021

My favorite piece was Woman at the Well,” which visually depicts the verse John 4:14. In the King James version of the Bible, the original text reads, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Although the religious overtones are still present in McGrath’s version, I like the more secular angle that he decided to take with his interpretation. It feels like the natural progression of the last two pieces I selected; the river bubbling up at the edge of darkness and light, bursting forward in spring of water leaping up. It could be the creativity O’Donohue described, or a stronger relationship to God, or something else entirely. The artwork itself allows for interpretation too, as the only thing we know about the people depicted is that they are enjoying their experience.

The Clare Gallery has become my favorite gallery because of the thoughtfulness they put into selecting their exhibits, and how the messages they support help me to see the world from a different perspective. As I get older, I notice the sacred and the secular are combining more and more, and I think I’m okay with that.

NEXT
Spirited Franciscan Inspired Quotes continues at the Clare Gallery through March 9, with an artist’s reception occurring on March 2 from 1 – 3 PM.

Jamil hits the town for some nightlife and music.

Tags:

Sign up for our morning newsletter

Don't want to miss a single Independent article? Sign up for our daily email newsletter! Click here for more info.