With human eyes

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

-Hebrews 11:1

Gray Malin - St. Tropez

I was helping a client frame some artwork a few weeks ago and one of the pieces was a large print of a photograph by Gray Malin. If you are not familiar with Gray Malin's gorgeous photography, you can see more of his work here - you really should check it out if you can. And if you have a chance - read his success story here (it is really quite inspiring!). I particularly love his aerial beach scenes. They remind me a lot of the Christian Chaize photographs that are so popular right now.

Gray Malin

 ‘A la Plage, A la Piscine’ series

The piece that my client purchased is one of his beach scenes and is to go in their master bedroom:

Nude Beach

I am not an art critic by any means, but I do love art and understand enough to know that one of the purposes of art is to communicate or evoke an emotion or a feeling. And with that being said, art will be different for everyone. I loved this piece purely for the colors and the textural quality. The movement of the white sea foam and the large rocks on the the sand juxtaposed with the colorful beach umbrellas and towels are stunning. For my client, it may remind them of a special place they have been and when they see it, it makes them happy. We had it framed in a simple white frame and mat to let the photograph shine.

I am not sure the story behind why they chose this particular piece, but I do know that it was purchased online. And so when they viewed it it was small and not full sized as it would have been if they had seen it in person and there were things in the photograph they didn't see. When it arrived, they were quite surprised to find that not only were the people on the beach all nude ... but they were also all male. And not that that is a bad thing ... but probably not what they would have chosen for their master bedroom or possibly even for their home. But what a great conversation piece, right? I think that it is such a great story and I am certain it will make them smile when they walk by it. And if their friends happen to venture into their bedroom and see it, I know it will make a wonderful conversation piece! 

And it made me think about how things are not always as they seem. Now this may seem like a stretch to you, but oddly it is exactly the way that my brain works ... and I thought of how we often get upset about things that we think are true and turn out not to be and how we spend time worrying about things that never even materialize and that we have a hard time believing in the things we don't see but are promised that they are true. Like this:

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him." 

-1 Corinthians 2:9

And I think that is what I would remember if that photograph was hanging in my home.

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

                   - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18