The baptistry painting is a unique form of Christian art found in some churches that baptize by immersion. We hope to photograph some of these paintings and share some of the history of their origins in this blog. All baptistry and church photos have been taken by Sheila Hunter and may not be reproduced or republished without permission If you are interested in having your church’s baptistry painting represented, please leave a comment. Thanks!

Welcome to an online gallery of photos of church baptistry paintings.

Many Christian churches baptize by immersion. Some of these churches feature paintings as a part of their baptistries. We hope to preserve this unique form of landscape painting by photographing examples found in churches in North Carolina. We also hope to record where possible the stories of these paintings’ origins.

This ongoing project is the collaborative effort of Sheila Hunter and Jill Crainshaw.

About Sheila: “My fascination with baptistry paintings began as a young child gazing up at the baptistry painting in my grandmother’s Baptist church in Whiteville, NC during Sunday morning worship services. I often imagined myself floating down that depiction of the Jordan River. Being an artistically inclined child, I was very interested in Christian art, which one usually didn’t see in the Baptist churches I attended, except for the occasional baptistry painting. My interest in art was so strong I went on to earn a BFA in Painting and Printmaking. Today my artistic focus is in photography, which I enjoy as a hobby.”

About Jill: “I once baptized an adult in a mountain river. Snakes slithered by me, the deacon, and the person being baptized as we stood waist-deep in the water. Today, I am a minister in a tradition where infant baptism is practiced, but I still love the mystery, beauty, and even danger of river baptisms. I teach ministry students at Wake Forest University about worship. My students come from many different communities and have experienced diverse baptismal practices. I enjoy hearing their and others’ baptism stories and writing about how different Christian communities practice baptism and connect baptism with Scripture, Christian history, and everyday faith.”