Lisa, my colleague at UPPC, and myself, in the midst of
pictures of contemporary art, on our screens and on paper : that was us, in
early February. Our goal : select art work meant to be the artistic support of
each Lent week. The first one, starting on March 5th, was about
Jesus tempted in the desert.
Lisa showed me the picture of a painting that immediately impressed
me : the pale figure of Jesus, isolated in the dunes, under a tormented sky. “The
artist’s name is Macha Chmakoff, said Lisa, and I believe he is French. Would
you email him?” Macha being short for Maria in Russian, I guessed that the
artist was a woman. While writing the email asking the cost of using the
picture of her painting, I kept repeating this name that sounded familiar. Could it be….?
Macha replied quickly and graciously. She allowed us to use
the picture without asking for a fee. In my email thanking her, I asked her if
she happened to have been a student of the Protestant seminary in Paris from
1996 to 1999. She said yes. That was
her. She was a student too and already an artist. An exhibition of her
work took place in the amphitheater of the seminary.
Today, March 5th, Macha’s painting was on the
screen of UPPC sanctuary. The spirit of the Protestant seminary in Paris is
hovering over UPPC...
To look at more aspects of Macha’s art, click here.
