Prodigal

20×20 inches, 2024, oil on canvas
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Inspired by the story of The Prodigal Son and how it relates to our times.

When most people read this story of the two sons – one faithful, the other wasteful, or “prodigal” – and the results of their choices, I don’t think they focus on what I believe is the most important part of the story, which is the father. He made all the difference before, during, and after the prodigal child left and returned. His joy – his love – made that difference.

This father’s love made it possible for both children to have faith in him, to trust that he respected their agency and wouldn’t turn away from them, that he would always be there for them, an earthly safety net, regardless of their paths. Even after both made heartbreaking choices – one squandering the father’s hard-earned inheritance, the other doubting his father’s fairness – they both had faith in him and knew they could return to his love and good graces.

Of course, in Christ’s parable, this earthly father represents Heavenly Father. We are the prodigals, the ones who tend to waste our inheritances. We all do at some point, and we all need the lessons, and we can trust in His fathomless and unending, running-to-hug us, welcoming love.

The gallery below shows the creation process. I made countless sketches of this story, mostly in ballpoint pen in various sketchbooks, over many years, on both sides of the continent. These are some of the most recent sketches, plus a few notes on the whole chapter.