Faedra’s Inspiration:
This drawing of Mary was my interpretation of Henry Ossawa Tanner’s oil painting of
Mary as a young girl at the Annunciation.

I was struck by the look of complete faith in her face just slightly clouded by doubt. We
don’t often see paintings or art depicting Mary as young or in such an intimate way.
She looks like what she was in the beginning- a young girl who is called to serve her
lord in a momentous event that she had no idea about the realities of what is being
asked of her. The look of surprise and wonder yet some fear is very potent.
I wanted to try to reinterpret this painting as a charcoal sketch. Many times changing
mediums can affect the overall mood of the artwork. I felt that as Mary was close to
my age, I wanted to try to convey in my attempt at this sketch, the feelings I would
have imagined she felt by using graphite to accentuate the shadows and mood of her
facial expressions. It was not an easy drawing, and I felt somehow that I drew closer to
understanding just a small part of the holiness of Mary, if we as regular people can ever
really understand these sacred mysteries.

Stefanie’s Inspiration:
Mary, the Mother of our Lord, was the muse for the project. But how can one capture the essence of our Mother’s beauty in just one piece of art? There are so many facets to her love, her pureness and her forgiving and understanding way. Her love for us is so strong, as strong as the love of our own earthly mothers. Loving Mary is one of the most important ways we can get close to God and praying the Rosary is a special way to do so. My piece reflects her pure beauty and loving heart, and it’s how I picture her when I pray.