As I walked through art galleries as a young child, I would often admire the talented individuals who had mastered the ability to tell religious stories with simple paint. I loved Raphael, Diego Velazquez, and Hans Memling, but as beautiful as their paintings were, I failed to see myself in their depictions of God.

I am a religious folk artist, seeking to broaden descriptions of the divine.  I reimagine our sacred narratives such as the nativity, the temptation in the desert, and the parable of the lost coin through a culturally rooted lens.  My paintings, all in a traditional Indian folk art style known as panchavarna or Kerala Mural Art, depict God and other Biblical figures as South Indian. Furthermore, I use cultural symbolism such as jewelry to represent divinity and specific mudras or hand formations to represent peace and blessings to demonstrate that God belongs to all of us.  

There was a time when Christian art encompassed art that was more rooted in local cultures such as Chinese, Indian, and Greek.  Asian depictions slowly faded as a response to colonialism, sealing a narrow view of the divine.  However, because God created each of us in His image, I believe that everyone, including those of European descent should be able to depict God in their own image.  Therefore, by broadening the perspective we have of God, we are more easily able to see the image of God in each other and in ourselves, and if we can do that, we can ensure that we treat each other as we would treat Him.