Juliana Jamieson is a Class of 2019 graduate from Mother of Divine Grace School. Read below to hear more about her journey to illustrating the children's book Jesus Said, "Be Not Afraid!" by Janele Hoerner.
My four siblings and I were all homeschooled up to high school through the Mother of Divine Grace program. My mother, Vilmarie Heroux, has been working as a consultant for MODG for almost 10 years. I also participated in the Mother of Divine Grace annual art contest, in which I placed a few times. That art contest was how Janele Hoerner, the author of Jesus Said, “Be Not Afraid!”, discovered my work and reached out to me with the proposition to illustrate her children’s book.
Since a very young age, I have always been attracted to art. I started with group art lessons with my siblings, then graduated to private lessons with professional artists in high school. In high school, I was able to begin creating and selling custom paintings. Since then, I have been painting custom portraits and doing freelance design work. In 2021, Janele approached me to collaborate on this book together. At the time, I was a newly engaged junior at Christendom college so between wedding planning and finishing up my degree, I worked on the book part-time. Over the next four and a half years, I finished my degree, got married, had two children, and finally finished the illustration and design of Jesus Said, “Be Not Afraid!”. I have changed, learned, and grown spiritually and artistically greatly over the course of the creation of this book. Learning about the publishing, printing, and illustrating world was a big learning curve for me but has taught me much about art. Illustrating is storytelling through art, not simply the imitation or interpretation of a thing.
I would say what inspires me is the idea of bringing things to life. Whether that be the memory of a loved one, a particular spiritual devotion, or in this case, the vision of the author. In painting portraits of family members who have passed, I am able participate in the grieving and—God willing—the healing of that family. In November of 2023, my older sister Nadine passed away unexpectedly after a troubled life. My father approached me to paint a portrait of her as she is now, perfected in God’s loving and infinite mercy. I am ashamed to say I was hesitant at first, but, as I prayed and painted, I saw why the Holy Spirit guided my father to get this painting commissioned. The painting is a reminder of her life, death, and eternal life with her heavenly family. When I paint deceased loved ones for other families, my goal is to share that personal comfort and hope I and my family feel regarding the portrait of Nadine.
It is my hope that other Mother of Divine Grace families will appreciate the beauty and relatability of the story Janele Hoerner has written in Jesus Said, “Be Not Afraid!”. It is a story of hope in the face of suffering. It teaches that you can always turn towards your Heavenly Family, especially when you feel alone. The story centers around a boy from a family with an autistic child. The boy struggles with feeling alone when his parents are tending to the higher need child. Through many theological themes, the boy learns to unite his suffering with the cross and lean on Jesus and Mother Mary. It really is a beautiful story, one that I wish I had when I was growing up. I hope many will be able to read and appreciate it as I have!
Her book will be published May 31st and the ebook is currently available for pre-order. The hardcover and paperback options will become available May 31st from this link!
Thank you to Juliana for sharing her beautiful story and book with us!
*(All photos were sent in with permission to share from Juliana)*