The Covenant by James Seward
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Tell Me MoreI find it a great honor that Somerset Fine Art has entrusted me to paint these pictures depicting Christ. I realize it is my responsibility to paint these depictions as scripturally and historically accurate as possible. It takes much research as well as scriptural insight.
In Biblical times at a feast with a large gathering, the tables were placed in a U shape, so that the serving people would have access to the guests. I needed to find authentic vessels and containers to place the food on. These would be baskets, pitchers, terracotta goblets, and some metal pieces. For the oil lamps, I molded one in clay and baked it. I set the tables up with some fake foods as well as real foods, and I placed candles on the table to simulate the illumination of the lamps. My two sons, my wife, Lyn, and other friends posed for the figures. They were dressed in representative clothes of the era, and I created a light source appropriate for the position of each in the painting. Since people do not have time to pose for long periods of time, we used a digital camera to photograph everything and printed them on the computer so I could refer to them easily while painting. This is a Passover feast. Some may call it the Last Supper. Jesus is about to show his cup and say, “This is my blood, which is shed for you.” Several near him are praying. Jesus tells his disciples that he is going away (John, Chapters 12-17), and the Father is going to send another comforter, which is the Holy Spirit. He says in John 14:20 that on that great day (Pentecost) "You will know that I am in you and you are in me.” In verse 21 he promises to manifest himself to the believer, and in so many words explains that the Holy Spirit is given to make Jesus real inside of us. Chapter 17 concludes the evening speaking of that inner union of Christ and the believer as a reality. My great desire is that this painting and its message will be a blessing to all. - James E. Seward DF About The Artist James Seward was born in Alabama, and raised in Tennessee. He spent summers with his grandparents in the wild back-country of Alabama. When he was six, his grandfather bought him his first set of oil paints, and as a young child he often painted his grandparents by lamp-light, to their great astonishment. "From the time I was five years old, I was continually painting and drawing in that great environment,” the artist remembers with fondness. After military service, Seward spent a year studying art under Howard Boyd Johnson at Watkins Institute in Nashville. In 1947, he enrolled at the Art Institute of Chicago, where he met his wife, Lyn. A year later they were married. After graduation, Seward apprenticed at two Chicago commercial art studios, but in 1954, the family moved to the midwest. After a year with an agency, he joined Union Gospel Press for the next six years. Since that time, Seward has been self-employed as a freelance illustrator and painter and has created works for most of the large protestant denominations including Standard Publishing in Cincinnati, the Methodists and Baptists in Nashville, the Concordia Lutherans in St. Louis, and the Nazarene Publishing House. Although the artist had attended church since childhood, after leaving for the Navy in 1944, he dropped his church attendance. In 1953, two former friends with whom he’d lost contact felt moved to pray for his salvation. And in 1954 when he and his family attended church with a neighbor, Jim and Lyn gave their lives to Christ.. Currently Jim is an ordained minister for the "Christ-Life Fellowship” headquartered in Dallas, Texas. He has spoken around the United States as well as in South Africa. He writes articles, makes teaching tapes and works on religious books. His religious paintings express his passion for Christ. Seward has completed over 22 illustrations for a Doubleday book entitled, Ancient Greece. In 1987 and 1989, he was one of 100 artists from around the country picked for the National Arts in the Parks Competition. James E. Seward has been commissioned for portraitures by many organizations. His paintings grace the walls of such companies as the General Motors Corporation, the Wells Fargo Bank, The McDonald Investment Company, and the Will Rogers Museum in Oklahoma. "I try not only to inform, but to move and delight with my artwork…I want the viewer to have an emotional reaction to each painting. That’s what makes it a work of art rather than just an illustration.” - James E. Seward James Seward passed away in December 2011 More Info |
