CARAVAN Board Member Jessica Wright shares her top pick.
Rembrandt van Rijn, Return of the Prodigal Son, circa 1668, Oil on canvas, 262x205cm
Henri Nouwen wrote a beautiful book that is an inspiring meditation on this painting. Seeing the painting through his eyes and exploring the themes of the unconditional welcome of a loving heavenly father made this painting come alive for me. I purchased a print of it twenty years ago, and it has hung in our homes all over the world, reminding us of the great love of our Father that never stops seeking us.
The painting is part of the European Fine Art Collection at The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia.
Jessica Wright is a specialist in contemporary Middle Eastern art, gallerist, curator and Arabist. She obtain her B.A. in Art History and Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. She was previously the gallery director and cultural coordinator for the Jerusalem Fund Gallery in Washington, D.C, which focuses on exhibiting contemporary art from the Middle East, along with offering a full range of cultural programming in the form of book signings, film festivals, dance and music recitals, and other cultural events. She most recently served as the Managing Editor at the Center for Public Justice, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C.
Jessica curated CARAVAN’s contemporary Coptic icon exhibition in Cairo titled “The Eternal Eye” in 2012. She has lived in Jordan and Egypt for over twenty years, and is currently based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with her husband and two children. She works as a freelance editor and consultant.