The Cross in Glenn McCarthy’s “Nothing But The Blood”
Sometimes artists use visual techniques to bring the observer’s attention to particular portions of a creation. Visual artist Glenn McCarthy uses the techniques of illustrating various shades of gray, shapes, and lines to invite observers to view the art’s central image-the cross. While the cross has the most dominant presence on canvas, it is important to pinpoint the landscape and air particles that surround the cross. McCarthy is asserting the cross as holding a special significance that is not present in nature alone, but rather within the magnitude and redemptive power in association with the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The cross in “Nothing But The Blood” stands firmly on the ground above the water in a lake, and the environment around the structure is experiencing a reaction. The reflections in the water beneath the structure are immense, the solid lines pointing toward the cross symbolizes majesty and vigor, and the movement of the surrounding particles is a testament to the strength of the cross.
By naming the creation “Nothing But The Blood” the artist is stating that the blood of the crucifixion influences nature and humanity as we know it. Placing the cross at the center of the art challenges observers to examine nature in the context of resurrection, particularly how the blood of Christ influences the world today as Jesus’ death and resurrection serves as the basis for the passage “because Christ once went through pain for sins, the upright one taking the place of sinners, so that through him we might come back to God; being put to death in the flesh, but given life in the Spirit” (1 Peter 3:18). “Nothing But The Blood” embodies the message of this passage and the other proclamations on Christ’s Resurrection in the New Testament.