Wednesday, August 5, 2009

God in the Gallery

I've been reading Daniel Siedell's provocative and thoughtful new book, God in the Gallery: A Christian Embrace of Modern Art. An art historian and long-time curator of a major university collection, Siedell has been thinking deeply about the relationship between modern art and Christian faith for a long time. At the end of his brief, insightful chapter on the history of modern art, he argues that it is not possible to say whether a work of art is "anti-Christian" or "Christian,"

even if the work was produced by a vehement athiest or a confessing Christian. Furthermore, the aesthetic product of an anti-Christian or non-Christian artist is not necessarily anti-Christian or non-Christian. Nor does it follow that a Christian artist produces works of art that are Christian or embody a Christian worldview.

Siedell points out that, contrary to much discussion in the Protestant world, an art work is not an illustration (or even the embodiment) of a single, predetermined idea, but rather an invitation into contemplation and communion. And while my education and inclination as an artist invites me to agree with him, my faith experience leads me to ask what, exactly, I am being invited to contemplate, and with what am I being invited to commune.

It is one thing to enter deeply into the apophatic mystery of a painting by Marc Rothko, but quite another to commune with some of the more disturbing productions of Damien Hirst. Do I really want to get sucked into the beauty of something that looks like a stained glass window, but is made of the wings of real butterflies? Do I need to endorse the inclusion of actual dead animals -- rather than their representation -- in order to contemplate my own mortality, or to consider the ethics of eating meat? Are we, as a society, so inured to representations of death that only the real thing will get us to react?

In asking these questions, I have inadvertantly proved Siedell's point, which (as I understand it) is that when we are willing to let go of our preconcieved ideas and simply experience the art before us, good, contemporary art opens us to perceptions, thoughts, and feelings that have the potential to lead us into the deepest places of our hearts. Or, at least, to the questions of ethics, morality, and justice that rightfully concern us as Christians. And that is reason enough to go looking for God in the gallery.
Deborah Sokolove

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Visual Theology

A few days ago, I was delighted to recieve my copies of Visual Theology: Forming and Transforming the Community through the Arts, which was edited by Robin Jensen and Kim Vrudny. Conceived as a festschrift for Wilson Yates on the occasion of his retirement as Dean of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, the book consists of a series of essays which look at contemporary art and artists through the eyes of faith. I am pleased and humbled that my chapter, "Wholly Porcelain: Mimesis and Meaning in the Sculpture of Ginger Geyer", is included.

Here is a short excerpt:

Geyer works in porcelain, which she calls the “Queen of Clay,” a notoriously difficult medium. In the tiny, efficient studio attached to her Austin home, she coaxes the clay into life-size, not-quite trompe l’oeil versions of children’s toys, kitchen utensils, household bedding, and other fragments of modern American life. This near-mimesis of the ordinary is a technical tour-de-force, attesting to the artist’s ability to force clay to do what it does not really want to do. Even when the desired form is precariously achieved, the accidents of production frequently add another layer of meaning to
those that were initially intended.

Recently, Geyer's work, "Birdbath for Hawks and Doves" was exhibited in the Dadian Gallery, as part of the Body of Christ exhibition. Of it she wrote:

When the inspiration arrived for a font, I resisted it. I scribbled a quick journal entry: “God, how did I get so orthodox? Baptism is the sacrament I don’t even like, except for the cute babies. Baptism starts something.” It seems that the church squabbles over baptism more than anything. Methodists do birdbath baptisms with sprinkles and dribbles, whereas the rival Baptists dunk ‘em like a donut. Where I was raised, both groups were suspicious of the Episcopalians who used the fancy name of “christening” and did it as an invitation-only affair. No wonder the style of baptism raises eyebrows; the Biblical passages about it are ambiguous. That’s good—let the ambiguity remain. But is baptism an exclusive rite of passage? Or merely a chance to coo at babies you don’t have to take home with you? It seems like the wetter they get you, the hotter the insurance from hell policy gets, and the more flamboyant is the call to conversion. It is that last one, the salvation-or-else theology, the washing away of original sin in a young innocent that tainted baptism for me.

Ginger's irreverent questioning of the traditions and customs of contemporary Christians springs from her deep yearning for authentic expressions of faith. Her sculptures, most with accompanying stories, poems, or essays, invite us to question our assumptions, investigate our prejudices, and come to terms with the messiness of incarnation. As reflections on divine grace and our fragile, earthen selves, they proclaim that the Word of God is much more than words. Visual theology, indeed.

You can view Ginger's work at her website, http://www.gingergeyer.com/. An online gallery of the complete Body of Christ exhibition may be seen by clicking here.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

In the beginning.....

As the new Director of the Henry Luce III Center for the Arts and Religion at Wesley Theological Seminary, I am excited about the possibilities that I see ahead for LCAR as we move into the future. I am honored and delighted at the trust and confidence that WTS has placed in me to lead the Center.

After fifteen years as the Curator of the Dadian Gallery, which included time as an MTS student at Wesley, PhD work at Drew University, and finally attaining the rank of Associate Professor of Art and Worship here again, this feels like the capstone of my career.

As I look ahead, I am aware of the important groundwork laid by LCAR's founder and first director, Catherine Kapikian, in insisting on the centrality of the arts in theological education and creating a program that is the standard by which arts offerings at other seminaries are measured. Not only is there art on every hallway and office wall, but the expectation that the arts will be an integral part of the way we teach and learn about God, the Church, and the world pervades the seminary. I am beyond grateful to Catherine for her vision of providing a place for artists and theologians to be in conversation, and for her thirty years of guiding LCAR from that early, prophetic vision to its current, living, incarnate reality. As Director, I pledge to maintain Catherine's tradition of combining teaching, research, and an active studio practice with a willing ear and an open heart for who all want to explore the intersection of art and faith.

I am, of course, also aware that many challenges are before me. Perhaps the most sobering of these challenges is the reality that our endowment, including the generous grant given to us by the Luce Foundation several years ago, as well as other gifts from individual donors who believe in our mission and our programs, has been severely diminished by the economic downturn that has affected all of our lives. Where once we were able to pay for about half of our expenses from the income of that nest-egg, it now covers a little more than one quarter of our ongoing costs. High among the many tasks that fill my to-do list is rebuilding that endowment and ensuring the financial health of the Center so that it can serve the needs of artists and the Church in the 21st century and beyond.

Although we, like everyone else, have had to tighten our belts, we are pleased to continue to offer a full calendar of exhibitions, events, and classes. As students come back from their summer activities, the Dadian Gallery's fall season will open with "An Artist's Reaction to War," a group exhibition organized by guest curator Cecilia Rossi, featuring works by ten nationally-known artists, while Rossi's own multi-panel work, "War Memorial: Iraq and Afghanistan," will fill the walls of the boardroom. Look for information on this and other shows on our upcoming exhibitions page.


In the Fall semester, the studio will be filled with the sounds and sights of our new Artists-in-Residence, Lauren Raine, Doug Purnell, and Carolyn Gass as they move in to begin their own projects and work with students; and the continuing presence of Distinguished Artist-in-Residence, Catherine Kapikian. Meanwhile, Deryl Davis will be casting for a production of Michael Hollinger's play, Incorruptible, a dark comedy about the dark ages; Eileen Guenther will teach music courses and lead the choir; Kathryn Sparks will teach dance; and Tracy Radosevic will help students learn to tell the stories of the Bible artfully and dramatically.

Additionally, in the coming months look for new opportunities to become involved with our work, whether it is volunteering to be a docent in the Dadian Gallery, participating in ongoing conversations about what it means to be an artist of faith in the 21st century, becoming our fan on Facebook, or reading this blog.

I look forward to hearing from you.