Melanie MacKillop
Do you remember our wonderful still-life series that was used from Palm Sunday (April 2nd) to the end of Eastertide (April 21st)? Melanie MacKillop created four still-life photos that represented Palm Sunday, Holy Week (Prayer Nights), Good Friday, and Easter Sunday which was used for the remainder of Eastertide. In case you didn’t know, much of what Melanie used in her photos were pieces that she found around her house. I got a chance to meet with Melanie and learn a little bit more about her process.
Tell us about the pieces you used for the Holy Week still life bulletin covers and where you found some of the pieces.
All of the pieces I used for the Holy Week still life project were gathered from around my home—many are family heirlooms passed down through the generations, or they are pieces I have collected from antique stores. I’ve always been an observer, so I go through the world looking for things that catch my eye, things I can’t help but stare at - especially old things with ornate designs or intricate patterns - glassware and goblets in rich colors, anything with a gold touch to it.
The Holy Week still life series was born from this art of collecting and arranging things. I put together a still-life arrangement for three days of Holy Week: Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday.
What was your thought process behind each installation? What do these installations mean to you when thinking about Holy Week and Easter?
For each installation, I thought about the emotion of the day. Palm Sunday is a celebration of the kingship of Jesus, so I played with a variation of green glassware, palm branches, and dried eucalyptus. I love how bright this installation turned out. This arrangement gives me a sense of honor and celebration of Jesus’ status as true ruler over the earth.
The Good Friday installation was hard for me because it was difficult to get into that mindset of the immense grief and heaviness of that day. I was immediately drawn to shades of deep red to represent His bloodshed, and I included a glass of wine, like how Jesus chose to symbolize His blood shed for us. Kyle Ragsdale encouraged me to think of darkness and gave me some things to help me get into that mournful mindset. I draped a piece of dark maroon velvet for the backdrop. Right from the start, I knew I wanted to use this marble vase that was my grandmother’s, and I didn’t really know why. As I reflected on it afterward, I think the thought of something stone made me think of the tomb. There’s this natural jagged line that exists in the stone, and I knew I wanted that to be visible in the photo. My parents were reflecting on it with me after I finished the project, and they said that line in the stone made them think of the torn veil after Jesus’ death. I was just amazed by that interpretation. I love that about art; that a visual can conjure a connection like that. I think this installation ended up having the most symbolism with the branch of thorns, the dead, charred leaves, and the candle that gives us a mournful feeling. Good Friday is the crux of Holy Week, the essential sacrifice, and it’s so painful, but you simply can’t get to the joy of Easter without going through the horror of Good Friday.
The Easter arrangement was so fun to put together. Gold, yellow, and orange tones have always given me such a sense of absolute joy, so I used these colors to represent the jubilance of Christ’s victory on the cross - the celebration that comes after going through such deep sorrow and struggle and coming out victoriously. I used some of my favorite things—a yellow, flowery teapot that my mother brought back for me from her trip to England when I was young—yellow was always my favorite color. I can still remember how much I loved it when she first gave it to me—a little glass goblet and a glass vase that were both used as decor at our wedding and my favorite patterned gold cloth—things that resonate with total happiness for me.
Tell us about what it means to find beauty and value in so many random yet beautiful and elegant items.
For me, it’s all about how things interact. I love the art of arrangement. I love to think about how to position objects in a given space so that they relate well with each other and with their environment, particularly in my and Jamison’s home, whether it’s pieces on the mantel or a decoration at the center of the table for a special celebration dinner. How things flow in a space really affects how you feel. I want our home to be a place of hospitality, so I want friends and family to feel a sense of warmth and harmony when they are in our home.
I cherish things that have been passed down through my family. I also love to go to an antique store and find something that was once cherished but was abandoned, and when placed in just the right spot, its value is evident. I love to bring seemingly random things together and see how they play together to create something surprising. When things are arranged well, each piece has room to sing, and the collection as a whole has harmony—there’s balance and cohesion among the colors and textures. And the differences are important. It wouldn’t be as interesting if all of the pieces were the same. It’s sort of a picture of how God values us and brings us together into harmony through the church.
