Story Behind the Art: Jesus Ink Blot (Rorschach)

This project is proof that team work makes the dream work.

It all started with a question, “I have an idea, will you tell me if you think you can do it?”

Then anxiety followed. I wasn’t sure I would understand the idea; I wasn’t sure I could even execute the idea even if I understood it. But, I also know that growth comes only from stretching yourself past your comfort zone so I said “I’ll try, but you may want a backup plan.”

One of our pastors proceeded to tell me his idea. He sent me images of Rorschach paintings. Rorschach paintings are named after the psychologist who invented them as a tool to aid in psychoanalysis. They’ve become iconic in their own right. Everyone knows an ink blot image and that they’re supposed to reveal something about you - but rarely does anyone know they’re called “Rorschachs”.

The idea was to create our own “Rorschach” that had the face of Jesus in it. The hope was that people would experience “discovering” Jesus’ face. If it could work, the audience would experience what he hoped the next series of sermons would accomplish as well: “Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament.” It can be difficult to see where the Old Testament is pointing to Jesus but once He gets pointed out, you’ll start to see Him everywhere.

I loved the idea and started working. I painted two different versions. They each had strengths and weaknesses so with a little Photoshop magic, we combined strengths of both paintings to get the image you see here. And honestly, I was surprised that I was even able to do it. Ink blotting was new for me. Combining a distinct figure (profile) with an abstract image (blots) was new for me. But it worked!

We took this image and gave it to a digital artist who was able to mirror the image and make it look like a true “Rorschach”. After this another artist actually illustrated the image and made a 15 second “bumper” video that plays on Sunday morning. You can find it if you find Stonegate Church’s Facebook page (Stonegate Church, Midlothian) and look for the post on September 7th, 2019.

The final image is powerful. I have been humbled again and again that I got to be a part of this project. I’ve also been there when people finally “see” Jesus in the image for the first time! What a great moment!

I hope I’ll get the chance to do more collaborations in the future! This project has encouraged me to take the risk!