Eric Nykamp - Acrylics

All of life is art
All of art is prayer
All of life is prayer

People often ask me what my artwork means. This is a difficult question, because my art flows directly out of my life experience. My paintings are the footprints of my walk with God. Each individual footstep is a prayer spoken to God through the language of paint. In many ways, these paintings are the story of my spiritual journey. As I reflect on this journey, the significance of each step changes. What seemed important at one point in time seems less so now, and some of the things I considered insignificant in the moment seem to carry more significance now in retrospect.

Barefoot on the holy ground of my imagination, the figures I paint symbolically represent the emotional reality of my inner world. This world unveils my humanity - my reflections, my struggles, and my hopes. These images are glimpses into the lived experience of my own walk of faith, as seen through spiritual eyes.

Occasionally, some have challenged me to explain why I consider my art to be "Christian art." My art is not a re-telling of scripture, it is not an illustration of theology, but it is deeply Christian, because it is about the lived-experience of Christianity. I hope that you find that my paintings do not tell you what to think, but I hope that they give you permission to curiously wonder, ask thoughtful questions, and reflect on your own life as you take a look at these images from mine.