Release From Fear

Artist

Char DeVos

Artist bio

Having and have not recovered from many of life's challenges I use art as my shield, my mouthpiece, my sanctuary. I have taught art for 30 years and now am delving deeper. My audience is varied. Members of my congregation and members of my collective and community relate to my paintings, mix media pieces, sculptures in extraordinary ways. Their feedback enriches my life. I attempt to communicate reality through metaphor and feeling through all the elements emphasizing the unexpected and incongruous. Most of the time my art pieces do not match the couch, so to speak, but they attempt to take the viewer on a journey with me.

Visual Arts 2026 Contest

Title

Medium/Genre

Painting

Artist Statement

I had been going through a difficult time, with a dialogue in my head of "why's and what ifs" and a tension in my body that carried through into many nights. There was a darkness and whole body tension that needed release.
It was then that found a previous painting I had done of a fearful gesture. I realized, needing to resolve my fears I decided to play out a solution on canvas. And of course the dual gift of creating and scriptural promises impacted my release of fear. There are so many messages in scripture to "fear not". I return to that message so many times through prayer and meditation. It is God creating within me a beautiful calm that emboldens me.