29 March 2024

On show: Jesus as every Melburnian

Artist Michael Donnelly. Picture: Geoff Shaw.

Jenan Taylor

21 February 2023

If Jesus was in Melbourne, He might be a streetwise larrikin with a knack for pavement art, according to Melbourne artist Michael Donnelly.

Mr Donnelly’s Jesus in Melbourne monoprint series was conceived in the 1990s and imagines Christ in our city.  

Twelve of the illustrations are on display at St Paul’s Cathedral, and invite people to think about Jesus, and of the last week of His life with popular Melbourne spots as the backdrop.

The black and white prints range from depicting Him entering the city on a tram, and sharing fish and chips at Elwood beach, to being crucified at Chadstone shopping centre.

For Mr Donnelly, the point of drawing contemporary Jesus in present day Melbourne was to showcase Him as every person.

Read more: Artwork shows light to the world this Easter

“I was really trying to get across the idea of Christ being in a real place and time that people can relate to,” he said.

“I struggled a bit with who Jesus might be in the current day, but settled on a larrikin personality, possibly someone of Irish descent, who was confident walking down the streets of St Kilda, maybe, without the airs and graces that we might perhaps usually envisage Him having in terms of being the son of God.”

The artist said his black and white portrayals showed that Jesus could be any culture or ethnicity whether African, Chinese, Indigenous or a person of Jewish background who hailed from the Middle East.

But Mr Donnelly also acknowledged there were areas of Christ’s ministry and light, including His many miracles and healings that his depictions had not touched on yet.

He said he was toying around with ideas for illustrations based on parts of the Gospel of John that further looked at other events leading up to the Passion of Christ.

“As John said himself, the world couldn’t contain all that could have been written about Jesus, so it’s something that I keep coming back to, which is a nice thing to do,” Mr Donnelly said.

Members of the community can view the exhibition at St Paul’s Cathedral until 10 April.

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