In 1982 I lost one of my sisters. Processing that grief became an insurmountable burden. By 1994 my faith seemed stretched beyond capacity. I found myself drawn to cathedrals, and especially their ceilings. There, with my camera, I found a peace that I could find nowhere else. The simple action of looking up drew my spirit higher.

Stone and shadows became my refuge. Soaring Gothic was born in 1995 out of this period of struggle and opened new path for me in my artwork.

In 1998 my father died. Again, I was weighed down with the power of death and life. Now there were no cathedrals for me to visit. I had to turn to God and the solitude of my own soul. Remembering the promise of the ceilings, infinite space and a peaceful universe full of God’s promise, I turned once again to my pastels. Each mark became for me the repetition of a mantra, balm for my wounded soul. The lines and colors became the shadowy movement of light on cathedral walls. That same peace I found in a cathedral returned with each mark upon the paper, and Journey of the Soul II emerged.

2002 brought the death of my mother, and a year later the death of my second sister. As I drew upon my source of photographs, Cathedral of the Interior appeared. With it came the realization that there is no division between heaven and earth. My loved ones aren’t gone; they have only stepped behind the veil and will be there with my Lord when it is time for me to enter the greatest cathedral of all. The presence of the Holy has become part and parcel of my working atmosphere. It is to God, through my paints, my camera, and my computer, that I turn for solace. He has never failed to appear and to sooth my soul and enrich my life with the gift of image.

Barbara Desrosiers

email: turtlespirit@mac.com
web: http://www.turtlespiritstudio.com

Soaring Gothic
Pastel, 1995
24" x 18"

Journey of the Soul, II
Pastel, 1998
25" x 20"