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Father and Son

Sophia Victor New York, NY

2021-24: Of her painting “Father and Son,” Sophia Victor writes:

When I went before the Lord concerning my marriage, I prayed from many different angles. When I began to grow weary, finally I reminded the Lord of the covenant that I have with him concerning my son Pharaoh. I stood on that covenant and interceded. My prayer was, “Lord, this child needs a kingdom father so that he can grow in your ways. I have given you full custody of him, now provide someone that will stand for him and guide him in this thing called life.” That prayer was answered and continues to be answered through the life of my husband.

During the year when the world shut down, so many changes occurred. I watched my son grow from a child into an adolescent before my eyes. He began to navigate art materials as an outlet to maintain his peace. My biological family grew closer than ever as we attempted to be a village raising four boys, my mother’s grandsons. My son’s biological father was also incarcerated during this time. I reflect in this piece on the community needed to raise a child and the new personal community of a new family that the Lord has given me. It is a reminder of the seeds sown at different stages in early childhood development and stands on the biblical instruction to train up a child in the way he should go.

About Sophia

Sophia is an artist and art therapist, and teaches at the School of Visual Arts. She resides in NYC with her husband and son.

Sophia’s Learning Cohort
Creative Community Care Resident 2021-24

A joint project of the Ministry in the City HUB and Walls-Ortiz Gallery at City Seminary, the Creative Community Care Virtual Residency brought together socially-engaged Christian creatives from New York City, Indianapolis, Chicago, Los Angeles, Charlotte, and Corsicana (Tx) for peer mentor support, learning, and sharing. In 2021, residents developed local projects in their respective cities, exploring creative practices of care in the context of community. Projects engaged the concerns and questions of the pandemic period (mutual aid, care re-imagined for social distance, etc.) at the intersection of the arts, learning, faith, and the city. In 2022, the resident pairs offered public online workshops. Starting in 2024, Creative Community Care, a traveling group exhibition of the artwork will be on display with related programming in cities across North America. In 2024, the exhibition has been on view in Santa Ana, CA (March 1-5), Houston, TX (August 7-23), and will be in St. Paul, MN (November 1 - December 15). In 2025, it will go to Indianapolis, IN (March - April), Charlotte, NC (May-June), and possibly Boston, MA (November). For 2026, we anticipate a stop in Toronto, ON (Canada) before a final show in New York City.

Sophia’s Ministry
Program focus: Arts
Sophia’s Neighborhood
Sophia’s Prayer

I pray that the Lord will do a new thing and build a new foundation for my city based on His word and His will in Jesus name.