Mary In Blue - Watercolor



Most Pure Heart of Mary - Watercolor 6/12/2016

The honor of creating an image to commemorate the70^th anniversary of the Most Pure Heart of Mary Parish was mine in 2016. My instructions were to create an image that embodies the spirit of the church itself. After deep contemplation, I decided to paint the statue of our patroness Mary, which stands like a sentinel above the north doors of the church. This exterior stone statue stands a story tall, facing a busy Topeka street. In contrast to the bustling world around her, Mary’s face is soft and inviting, her arms outstretched, welcoming visitors with a pure heart.

Along with celebrating the 70^th anniversary of the parish, Most Pure Heart also celebrated the 55^th anniversary of the Church building (Spring 2016). I felt no better way to celebrate fifty-five years of history than to convey the warm inviting nature of the statue by painting it’s likeness in soft water colors using only blue, in tribute to Mary.

Crucifixion - Painting My Faith

Carrie Jo Gros "It Is Finished" Oil on Canvas 2017 

Having been Catholic for only a little over ten years, being vocal about and expressing my faith is not something that comes natural to me. Having grown up protestant, my first introduction to Catholicism was at the University of Kansas during my BFA studies. You see, one cannot study art history without an immersion in the rich artistic history of the Catholic Church. Awareness of this exposure is not obvious, but it is there. (I myself did not become aware of my appreciation until years later when I stepped into a Catholic church and was greeted by a replica of Michelangelo’s Pietà.) As my faith has grown, so has my desire to explore and express it in my art. This desire comes with a great amount of fear. Not only fear of creating a work that is misunderstood, but also fears of it simply falling short or not being good enough. Questions such as, “What if I get the references wrong?” or “If this painting is no good, am I insulting Mary?” taunt and paralyze me.