Discussing Our Role as Artist’s: Part 1- God’s Invitation
This post is the first in a series discussing the role of God’s Faith-Driven Artists in the Church and the world. These are just rough ideas that, over time, are maturing and becoming clearer to me. While these ideas are rough and only loosely formulated, I thought I would share them and ask for your views. What do you see as the role, in the world and in the Church, of Faith-Driven Artists?
God’s Invitation
As Believers, we are God’s living invitations to the foot of the Cross (1Peter 3:15). We are not His Holy Warriors here to change the world. Ridding the world of evil and sin is God’s job through Christ Jesus. We Believers are God’s hand-written, gold embossed invitation to the world to come to the foot of His Son’s cross of redemption. The responsibility is upon all who believe (Matthew 28:19), to so strongly reflect the grace and love of Jesus that some may ask, “Why are your so steady through the tough times? Why are you always so up? Why doesn’t life seem to bug the hell out of you?”
Our art therefore needs to be a truthful expression of the grit and grace of the human enterprise. It also must be, in some way, a loving invitation from Christ to a hurting world. The phrase, “in some way” is used very broadly here.
I’m not in any way telling my fellow artists what to make or how to make meaning in the name of the Lord. I’ve read my share essays written by presumptuous theologians dictating what art should and should not be. I’ve personally encountered Christians who believe they need to tell me how to use my gifts to his glory. I’m not adding my voice to that crowd.
It’s evident however that in our creative work, the world-view of who we are and what we value is indelibly infused into our work. The two, our world-view and our art, cannot be separated, nor can our faith. If we’re diligent in our walk with God, that vital and eternal relationship will, in some way, be evident in the work.
What I See
I see faith driven artists then as walking upon the same knife edge that Jesus walked while here among us. The great lamentation most of us in the faith-driven arts have encountered is that the secular/unbelieving world often complains that our art is “too religious.” And further, the Church often complains that our work is too worldly or secular. Both, of course, are mere excuses in an attempt to sideline God’s creatives as somehow irrelevant.
Christ constantly disconnected Himself from the political or merely religiously driven agendas of the powerful people around Him. He avoided the efforts of zealots wanting to hijack His mission and use Him as a king to liberate Israel of the Roman occupation forces. Christ also fiercely reprimanded the Leaders & Teachers of the Law from hijacking the faith of the people and to promote themselves as religious gatekeepers.
I see us, the faith-driven creatives as walking the same knife edge; that of preventing our work from being dumbed-down into secular impotence, and avoiding it being acquired and manipulated by the Church.
Your Thoughts
If future installments I’m going to explore what seems to me to be our role as we relate to the Church and to the secular/non-believing world. I hope you’ll weigh in with your thoughts, views, and experiences. Oh, and please remember, this is a discussion, not a debate. Let’s respectfully leave room for all views.
Please, ask first…
A reminder: All of my posts here on Creative Harmonies are protected by copyright law. If, beyond brief quotes, you wish to copy or use this material, please contact me first at lcurtiss54@gmail.com.
Thank you!
Faith in the Movement
I’ve had some really wonderful conversations lately, and I’m very excited about the future of the movement. What movement, you might ask? I’m talking about the Faith & Arts Movement. For me, an awareness began back in 2001 when I attended a Church Drama Conference here in Seattle. It was sponsored by our own wonderful Taproot Theatre Company.
IN THE BEGINNING
I listened intently to the Workshop Leaders. I picked up every piece of literature I could lay my hands on. The three biggest gifts I got from that gathering were; 1) an awakening to the fact that there was an on-going dialogue about the convergence of faith & art; 2) that there was a reason I bristled at the term, “Christian Artist”; 3) that author Madeleine L’Engle had written a highly praised book, Walking On Water: Reflections On Faith and Art.
I quickly got my own copy of L’Engles book. I highlighted passages, tabbed it, and even found Biblical concepts she was talking about and noted them in the margins.
It’s been 11-years since that life-changing conference. In that time I’ve done 3-years of theatre in a church, 7-years of leadership with a major Christian theatre company, and have now segued into my own visual art practice. What I’ve learned along the way has been priceless, and God and I are continually mining those hard-won, extremely difficult experiences for clarity, and vision.
I now know the difference between faith and mere-religion. I have a tougher skin and can accept secular criticism of being “too religious/spiritual.” I can even handle challenges from fellow Believers who call our art “too worldly”, or worse. I know why my fellow faith-driven artists and I shun the terms “Christian Art” or “Christian Artist”. I know why “good enough” simply isn’t and why God deserves the finest work I can possibly produce.
I read everything I can lay my hands on about this Faith & Art Movement. In my most recent reading of the blogs I follow, I’m hearing from many quarters that what once was a cacophony of disappointed, frustrated, often infuriated artists of faith, has now matured into an actual movement. It has no single leader or organization, but is without doubt directed by God’s own Holy Spirit. This is common ground we share with one another, and it’s not just an American movement either. There are creative brothers and sisters of faith all over the world participating. It’s absolutely amazing.
LANDSCAPE TRANSFORMED
In a recent StoneWorks interview, CIVA Executive Director Cameron Anderson said; “Forty years ago, especially in the more conservative parts of the Protestant church, there were only a few books on art and faith—notably by writers such as Francis Schaeffer, H. R. Rookmaker, and Madeline L’Engle—and no supportive national organizations. Today, this landscape has been transformed! There is interest and support on many fronts including, but not limited to, books and blogs, conferences and journals, arts-related undergraduate and graduate programs, and local and national exhibits.”
I’m excited by my fellow creatives who are thinking about and responding to a growing awareness that our faith in God ought to be at the center of our art practices; that God is sought as the source of what is made/performed; that tangible changes in art circles, in churches, in theatres and galleries are evident.
I sense a momentum building toward a future day of critical mass. When that will happen, or what it will look like I do not pretend to know. In the mean time I am seeking to join the conversation. I pray that my own art practice will result in changed lives to God’s glory. I read books, blogs, essays, and articles. I seek fellowship with other faith-driven artists. And the intimacy of my own ArtRoom Studio, God and I work together to interpret, translate, and communicate the messages He has for me to convey through my art-making. I do the work. He gets the glory. It’s awesome.
LINKS
Here are just a few links to resources you may find nurturing and nourishing. For more possibilities, please check out my blog roll in the side-bar at right. The plethora of resources available today can be overwhelming, so may I suggest that you simply skim and glean what seems meaningful to you in the creative work you’re pursuing. You’ll often find wonderful lists of meaningful links on these sights as well.
Christians in Theatre Arts (CITA) – http://cita.org/site/
Christians in Visual Arts (CIVA) – http://civa.org/
David Taylor’s Diary of an Arts Pastor - http://artspastor.blogspot.com/
IMAGE Journal – http://imagejournal.org/
International Arts Movement (IAM) - http://www.internationalartsmovement.org/
StoneWorks – http://stoneworks-arts.org/
YOUR THOUGHTS
What have been or are your experiences with finding your way to the convergence of faith and art? Where are you showing/performing your work? How do you find nourishing, nurturing friends, fellowship, and conversations?
