Thought-provoking paintings gaze toward divine

he Feminine Face of God” is the title of a show of watercolors by Connie Seabourn at Oklahoma City University.

The exhibit of thought-provoking, exquisitely layered watercolor paintings is at OCU’s Norick Art Center, 1609 NW 26.

Seabourn said she began the 45 works after attending a workshop conducted by a member of the Catholic Sisters of St. Agnes.

“God is neither Father nor Mother, but we can understand God better by making those … comparisons,” Seabourn said. “God isn’t limited by gender!”

In Seabourn’s “The Creation,” the face of a benevolent woman smiles down on a white bird rising with a leafy vine in its beak over an Earthlike orb.

In her “Adam and Eve and Lilith,” the latter’s spirit flies off the page as Eve stands holding an apple, and Adam bends down to eye the coral snake-like serpent.

Dealing deftly with the Christian tradition is her “Immaculate Heart of Mary,” an icon-like image of the Virgin gesturing and pointing to her heart.

Blending classic mythology with Native American beliefs nicely is “Athena: Female Wisdom.”

In this watercolor, a woman wearing a white owl headdress gestures gently to a white owl with honeycombed, spiderweb wings in a moonlit forest.

Black birds also become strong symbols of Seabourn’s Native American heritage in “Crow Woman” and “Crone Moon.”

The former’s face seems to be nearly embedded in the bird’s body, while the latter’s moonface appears to be more timeless than old and withered. A baby or young child’s face nearly touches the mother’s, whose hand reaches toward the child, in a work that beautifully expresses the maternal bond.

Blue-gray, circular bubbles and blotches cover the surface with glowing light in the center of this work, named after a quote from Isaiah, “God Loves Us Like a Mother.”

A black, starkly simplified silhouette adds to the impact of her watercolor of a womanin-the-moon, “Birthing the Star Children,” seen

“The Feminine Face of God”

OCU’s Norick Art Center, 1609 NW 26

Exhibit runs through July 27. Hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.

208-5226 or www.okcu.edu spilling from her bowl or basket.

A rare blend of painstaking research, lyrical visual storytelling, and superb yet understated technical finesse, Seabourn’s show is highly recommended in its run through July 27.

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