The Value Of A Masterpiece Is In The Signature

signatureMost artists never sign a painting until they are confident they are finished with the piece, setting it aside as the very last thing they do. I have artist friends who have completed and sent a piece to a gallery, only to have the gallery owner send it back because the artist was so caught up in finishing the piece, he had forgotten to sign it. Yet the worth and value of any painting is based on the authenticity of the signature. When an artist has signed a piece, he’s not only signifying that the painting is complete, but that the work has his stamp of approval. It’s so important I will often prep the area on the painting where I plan to sign it before starting on anything else.

Developing My Signature

When I was in high school, I knew art would be a major part of my life, so I spent hours working on my signature. I wanted it to be unique and recognizable. I’ll never forget the moment I arrived at the signature I’ve used my entire life. I was in study hall signing my name over and over with different nuances I had been working into the script. A friend asked what I was doing and offered a suggestion to the one part I still wasn’t happy with. She was a godsend; it completed the signature that I’d been working on for several years. Since then, friends have tried to forge my signature. They get close but it’s never quite right because they don’t understand those nuances that make the signature unique.

The Signature On Your Life

God’s signature on the masterpiece of your life cannot be duplicated. You’re one of a kind and approved by His signature. God has already signed the canvas of your life and declared you as His masterpiece. He sees the finished work already in the light of Jesus and all that He has done for you on the cross. The signature is already in place.

You Are Authenticated

As an artist, I also sign a certificate of authenticity that’s placed on the back of each of my original paintings, along with my personal seal, allowing collectors to know the work is genuine. In the same way, your value as God’s masterpiece has been authenticated as His work —as His masterpiece by signing the canvas of your life before you ever existed. It is both awe-inspiring and impossible to comprehend, but it is nevertheless true and wonderful!

How do you feel about being a masterpiece whose life has been authenticated by God as the artist?

(This blog is adapted from the book Life Palette)

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