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Origins of Art to HeartSome people find it unlikely that art can be a vehicle for divine inspiration. It can be especially hard to believe for non-"religious" art, and even harder to believe for modern art. But it is true.
In the beginning In Exodus 28:33, God specified that priestly garments were to have pomegranates embroidered on the hem. The instructions included some rather bizarre colors for the pomegranates: scarlet, purple, and blue. There are no blue pomegranates anywhere on Earth; God was using artistic license. So the first art was by God Himself. Consider the word "abba." This is the word that people in Jesus' culture used for "daddy." It is also a word Jesus encouraged His followers to use for God. It is not the sacred name of God, given to Jacob, but Jesus used it because it paints a picture for us of the intimacy of the relationship we are to have with God -- the intimacy of "daddy." In this and many other instances, Jesus used earthly images to show us aspects of who God is. So Jesus was an artist, too. Up until the Renaissance, art was generally of, by, and for the church. These people understood the power of art for communicating God's love for mankind. In fact, since few Christians understood the Latin in which masses were conducted, art was necessary in conveying the Gospel.
The estrangement During the Renaissance, the church continued to be the primary sponsor of great art. But hostile ideas, such as humanism, began to creep into art, too. Before long, art was becoming more and more secular, and the church began to lose its control over art. This began a slow process in which art and the church drifted farther and farther apart. Scandalous images appeared in art, and then images disappeared into abstraction, so the already wary church could not even tell what the art was meant to portray. And most recently, art has produced images calculated to be offensive to Christians. So art and the church have become estranged. But God has not stopped speaking to us through art. We've just stopped listening. Not all art carries the voice of God, but He continues to use every means available, including art, to bring us closer to Him.
The role of the artist But how can art bear God's voice if it's created by non-Christians -- even by artists sometimes openly hostile to Christianity? It may seem that the greatest artists are those most skilled in reproducing images as they appear in "real life." In fact, though, the artist's primary obligation, even beyond that of skillful execution, is honesty. A skillfully executed image with no fundamental truth in it will not endure as a great work. And some less-than-masterfully executed works are nevertheless revered because of the truth that they convey. To the extent that the artist is able to communicate truth, God is in that communication, even if the viewer has to sort through some disagreeable clutter to get to it. This should not surprise us; the Bible is full of stories of God's ability to use sinful men and women to accomplish His purposes.
My involvement Several times I have found myself standing before a work of art, moved to tears by the powerful emotion in the art. I have come to understand that the most profound experiences in art originate not with the artist, but in God Himself. When I encounter such power, it always distresses me to notice that many visitors in the museum seem to be missing the depth of experience available to them. I have wanted to find a way to show others the glory and power that is there if one knows how to find it. I do not claim to offer the insights of an academic art expert, but seek only to discover how art can help make God's presence more vital to you in a way that most Christians have never experienced. Recently, I have experienced the urges to share my experiences as a calling from God. The result is the Art to Heart ministry. I pray that God will use these efforts to speak to you in a new and profound way.
Jeff Dugan |
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