Idols Made
ArtPrize 2025 Entry
Artist Statement
Idols Made explores the ancient and ongoing human impulse to create and worship false gods. Inspired by the story of the golden calf in Exodus 32, this piece reflects on what we elevate today—not with carved images, but with our time, attention, and trust.
The work includes two parts: a painting to view, and a set of shiny gold stickers to take.
In the painting, a crowd of figures huddles tightly together. Each person is absorbed in what they hold—their phones. Their eyes are downcast, expressions vacant, entranced. On the backs of their devices is a small golden calf: a symbol of the modern idols we serve without realizing it. The figures are gathered, but disconnected—united not by truth or love, but by the quiet spell of devotion to created things.
The golden calf stickers are real—and viewers are invited to take one. They're meant to be placed on anything in your life that may be taking too much of your heart, your attention, or your trust. The goal isn't just to name our idols, but to help us resist them—and to turn back toward the one true God who created us for something more.
This piece isn't about one object or one kind of idol. It's about the deeper pattern—how easily we replace eternal truth with man-made desires. When we center our lives on what we create instead of the God who created us, distortion and division follow. But there is hope when we remember who made us—and who alone is worthy of our worship.
Venue
This piece is currently housed in my studio in Hillsdale. Please reach out or visit during open hours if you wish to see this piece in person.