Our class discussed how faith and art intertwine through the creation and production of artistic media. Although most of our conversation emphasized the familiar topic "glorifying God with all you do -- even artwork," I think there is more to this relationship.
This summer I spent a week in Maine's Acadia National Park, where I hiked wooded trails, climbed mountains, and saw the fog rolling over the Atlantic Ocean's waves. I saw the raw beauty of nature in a way that humbled me. Seeing these sites and being a part of them singled me out as a spec among mountains. Suddenly, the world grew to an enormous size and I was nothing. The artistic wonder of nature humbled me to sensing myself as a minimal, insignificant existence.
However, I realize the mastermind behind the creation of the human body and the unique flare that each individual holds. The care and effort that goes into the cellular network of the body is incredible. Human beings are a wonderful creation, just like nature.
With this newly developed self-awareness (that I am concurrently nothing and everything), I approach the idea of mixing faith and art. First, that faith can be an inspiration for our artwork. Artistic creations can be encouraged by Christian concepts, biblical passages, personal/testimonial experiences, creations made by God, etc. So, we would be able to say that our artwork "glorifies God" because it is inspired by God. Second, faith can be a means of making art. We can be praying or thinking about God and simultaneously be making art. Third, the art we make (once produced) can have an impact on ourselves or the community who views it. I think this is the most pertinent aspect of the mixture of faith and art.
The effect we hope to achieve with our artwork is crucial to comprehend because it constitutes our motives. In this way, an artist could create a piece of artwork that appears crude and ungodly to produce "controversy" or discomfort in her or his audience. As a result, the audience is in control of their own response, whether they are aggrieved or content by the artwork. Whichever feeling is evoked from the artwork, it is my hope that the audience consider the artist's motive before neglecting it as possibly offensive -- some of the most constructive moments in life are offensive and test our minds for a new imagination. If an imagination can be achieved in the audience that propels faith or constructive thought, I believe this is "glorifying God" because it expands God's (best) creation: the human mind.
