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Diana Isho I’ve always had a fascination with creation. Since I was a child, I knew in my heart all things had some sort of meaning and purpose to them. If the world wasn’t what I thought it was, then perhaps it meant much more than my imagination could stir up. I began to be inspired by stories whether cartoons, books or theatrical movies. I loved stories that stayed with me and held deeper meaning than any finite understanding could muster. I knew in some way these other worldly stories were just a reflection of real life events surrounding our culture and history. Real life accounts that were meant to teach us something about who we are. As I grew older I became interested in comic books, especially stories of underdogs becoming something they would never dream of. Through that time somehow the flame that was burning bright began to flicker and dwindle out and my art that began with light faded in the darkness of reality. I began to be drawn to the darker side of things that were influences from popular culture, tragedies and the issues that surround us in our world. In today’s prevailing postmodern thought, meaning began to get fuzzy and rough around the edges. “What is truth? Does it really matter who I am? Who am I?” I asked questions like Lewis Carroll’s Alice, living in a world that lost its meaning surrounded by nonsense and why no one could give me a straight answer. In this context I too would ask myself if I really did fit in. I wondered if life had a purpose. I created my own Goliaths’ in my work that I could never defeat on my own. I listened to their taunts, believing their lies. I related to the Biblical account of David who took his stand against a giant, some how holding on to hope like he did. David’s faith wasn’t a fairy tale but a real hope that seemed to linger in my heart until that day I would be set free from my captivity. I felt like Alice falling down the rabbit hole, but instead of falling I was caught by the arms of God. I grasped my faith like a sling to stand against my inner Goliath. As I began my search within my art, somehow there always seemed to be hope in the darkest places. I wanted to see light through the darkness. Hope seemed to stay and my faith grew as I was drawn closer to the Absolute Truth. The flame that was out rekindled again and I was made new. Making art is now a new purpose for me. Redemptive themes always seem to surface within my art. As I look back I see a fragmented pattern leading to the whole. My faith in Jesus Christ is the light shinning through the darkness, He showed me that I can defeat my Goliaths and stand up to them, If I was only going to face who I was and leave the rest to Him. Hope is a good thing and no good thing ever dies. Hope is what I want others to see in my work, taking things from popular culture in today’s obscure mood and showing the Light through them.

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