Judith can be contacted by e-mail at judith@judithmcrae.com

To purchase paintings, contact Judith using the e-mail address above, and arrange an appointment to visit the studio. If you don't live in or near Calgary, we can discuss shipping your pieces to you. Shipping charges are extra.

Blessings

This show is in two parts. The first part was at the Dalhousie Mennnonite Community Church from June 7th, 2016, until October, 2017, and the second part was from September 30th, 2016 until June 23rd, 2017 at Avenue Church..

See below for the write-up that I did for this collection.

Contact Judith at judith@judithmcrae.com to inquire. (Sizes are in inches.)

The pictures at Dalhousie

The pictures at Avenue

The word “blessing” can be taken in so many different ways, but in general it refers to a gift from God. You can get a blessing from a priest, which is different than having your Rosary blessed, which is again completely different than having your house blessed. We bless our food before we eat, and you can say, “Bless her heart” when really you would rather say something else instead, about someone who annoys you. Death after a long illness can be a blessing, but so is the birth of a baby, under almost any circumstances. Jesus blessed the little children, and He also blessed the sorrowful, and the peacemakers, and those undergoing persecution for His sake. So I couldn’t really pick which painting I wanted to put in this show, because I had so many different ideas.

The Pictures at Dalhousie Mennonite Community Church

"Behold, I Stand at the Door and Knock" - The title is taken from Revelation 3:20, part of the letter of the Apostle John to the Church at Laodicea, which has lost its faith in Christ. Christ is entreating them to "open the door" so that He can restore their faith in Him, and bring them to final salvation. This painting is part of the "Shadowlands" colllection, based on the story of C. S. Lewis's marriage to a divorcee. Her son is depicted in this picture, testing to see if the "Wardrobe" story is really true. He wants to see if he can go to Narnia, and is deeply embittered when he cannot.

"Blessed are They That Mourn" - The title is taken from the Beatitudes in Matthew 5. Jesus blesses eight different categories of human experience, all of which, from the surface, seem negative. This painting is part of the "Shadowlands" colllection, based on the story of C. S. Lewis's marriage to a divorcee. After her death from cancer, C. S. Lewis and her sons went into deep mourning, and entered into the profound meaning behind this Beatitude.

The Pictures at Avenue Church

“The Tree of Life My Soul Hath Seen” - this title is taken from a line in an old Christmas hymn called “Jesus Christ the Apple Tree.” The actual apple tree was in BC when I was on a painting tripduring the summer of 2015. God blesses us with food growing on trees.

"The Hiding Place” is a little cabin hiding away on the Kootenay lake. I ran across it by accident and I had to paint it because it looked so cozy and nice.

““The Winter Berries” was completed in January of 2011, which was a difficult winter. I was contemplating how good our loving God is, to provide food for the birds and the little animals even in the harshest cold.

“The Robin in Winter” was painted in the spring of 2013 - he was a sign of hope that soon the snow was going to go away, after another long hard winter. Hope is a blessing. This picture was sold to the Maxwell family.

The Church Garden” - this is an actual Church garden, at a little church up in North West Calgary. It is amazing to me how the volunteers can make just about anything grow in some of the unlikeliest conditions, such as a hot parking lot.

“The Smoke of the Incense, with the Prayers of the Saints” - the title is taken from Revelation 8:4, which describes the Heavenly worship. At Church when we go to Adoration, we see the priest offering incense while the Saints (who are the people in the pews, in this instance) are praying. When we go to Church, the Bible comes alive right in front of our eyes, and this is a blessing.

May you be blessed.

Judith McRae