Painting the Psalms: Week Two
It’s no surprise to me that I’m already burnt out on my daily art practice. I really hate routines. My brain wants to be so much more organic and undisciplined. I’m debating whether or not I’m going to scale back some of my documentation efforts to keep this project going. Currently, I’m posting screenshots of my finished work, alongside process videos, resulting in two posts a day on Instagram and TikTok. Plus custom graphics detailing my thoughts around the psalm, as well as a featured verse. And unique captions going into my art process.
I think I might just start posting the photography shots of my psalms and make the process videos more sporadic. I’m noticing this content isn’t performing as well as it was anyways and making the videos is getting monotonous every day.
The goal is to make art every day, not video content necessarily. I want to spice things up. We’ll see how next week goes.
I did notice that I have an emerging style coming out of this daily practice. I enjoy painting with gouache and then going over it with some kind of pastels. I don’t want to get stuck in a rut with this, but this is what has felt the most comfortable to me these past two weeks.
Psalm 8
“psalm 8” | 6×6 | gouache, oil pastels
Majesty. That is the word that comes to mind when I read this Psalm. It’s one of my favorites; every line just feels like a little secret gift.
“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?”
I wanted the composition to mirror God’s creation, in an abstracted way. I started with a base of emerald green, and then let the oil pastels take over with lots of fun curving lines and thick markings. I imagine God had fun when He was creating the world, so I let myself have fun, too.
Psalm 9
“psalm 9” | 6×6 | gouache
In Psalm 9, the psalmist claims he will give thanks to God with his whole heart because of all the Lord’s wonderful deeds. I’ve often wondered, what does it mean to do something with your “whole heart?” What would that look like? The sentiment feels lost in a world bent towards complacency and comfort.
And honestly, this week I haven’t felt like giving my whole heart to this project.
My compositions are usually wild and unruly, but on this day—I just couldn’t get past the initial gouache stage. I thought about doing some monochromatic embroidery, and then I considered bright yellow gestural soft pastels. But nope, my brain wasn’t having it. I stared at it for hours.
My brain just wanted my art to be pink. No amount of coffee could change its mind.
I feel this one is unfinished, like it has more left to say, but for now, I’m just going to let it be bold and pink and unapologetically itself.
Psalm 10
“psalm 10” | 6×6 | gouache, oil pastel
The center of this psalm for me is the word “justice.” I wanted to paint something that captured the ominous warning that the psalm carries alongside the hope of liberation. So I went with an abstract landscape with this hazy orange sunset—it’s almost this red sky set against a warm field. Like the calm after a battle.
Psalm 10 begins with a cry to the Lord about the works of the wicked. Those who harm others think God isn’t watching and that He won’t do anything—but the psalm takes a turn halfway, declaring that God does see and responds.
It’s a warning against the sentiment that God doesn’t care or that He’s not involved. Those with pride claim “there is no God” in the psalm, but eventually they come face to face with the God they once denied.
My favorite part of the psalm is the turn, when the psalmist says, “But you do see.”
It is both comforting and unsettling that God sees and knows everything. The wrongs done against us are recorded, as are the wrongs we do against others.
Psalm 11
“psalm 11” | 8×8 | gouache, soft pastels
I never realized how much the Psalms contain the fear of the Lord and mention His wrath. It seems inexplicably tied to His praise.
Psalm 11 details how the wicked will receive “fire and sulfur and a scorching wind” while the righteous and upright will “behold” the face of the Lord. Though injustice and wickedness seem to prosper, the psalmist says “the Lord is in His holy temple,” and that He is watching and testing the righteous.
Almost as if God’s temple were a courtroom. Those who choose the path of righteousness will see the face of God, while those who choose wickedness will face His fury. The Bible really is all or nothing about such things.
For this psalm, I decided to depict the bold “fire and sulfur” with bright hues of orange, with an underlayer of hot pink. Over the top, I toned down the saturated hues with warm soft pastels.
Psalm 12
“psalm 12” | 6×6 | gouache, charcoal
The faithful have vanished—that’s the title of Psalm 12 in the ESV. I wanted to evoke the feeling of smoke, swirling and drifting away.
The psalmist describes the Lord’s words as “pure words” like “silver refined in a furnace” that is “purified seven times.” I added some desaturated grey hues along with the bolder blue colors to give off this swirling feeling. Then I added charcoal, some bold lines and some smudges, to further add to the depth in the piece.
Psalm 13
“psalm 13” | 6×6 | gouache, soft pastels
“How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?”
I wanted to convey this using Payne’s Grey, but I couldn’t make a composition I was happy with. So I went in a whole different direction with bright, bold hues. I really love the way this one turned out. It feels like a song.
“I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.”
I find that I’m most motivated by color—big, bold, screaming color. It feels like coming home.
Psalm 14
“psalm 14” | 6×6 | gouache, soft pastels
What does it look like to seek after God? This psalm says, “The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.”
Psalm 14 suggests that seeking after God looks like this: doing what is good, pursuing righteousness, finding refuge in God (even in poverty), and calling upon the Lord when you’re in need.
At the end, there is a promise that God will restore His people. “When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.”
“When,” not “if.” Restoration, though it may look different from what you imagined, is a promise.
See you next week!
With the holidays upon us, I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to keep this up next week. I’m ready for the new year and a fresh beginning.
Follow along daily on Instagram and TikTok with weekly recaps here (and on Substack).
