Showing posts with label art and christianity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art and christianity. Show all posts
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Friday, 12 October 2012
Member's update: Jonathan Evens
Is there really a 'Secret Chord' that would both please the LORD and nearly everybody else as described in Leonard Cohen's popular song 'Hallelujah' And are there some people who just don't get music, as in the next line in Cohen's lyric?
These are among the questions explored in The Secret Chord, a new book by Peter Banks and Jonathan Evens.
They say, “In the book, we seek to explore a number of the dilemmas which musicians and other artists face, not so much in order to map out one route through or around these dilemmas but in an attempt to get the creative juices flowing. Our experience of creativity is of disparate and often contradictory ideas being crushed, swirled, fermented, shaken and stirred in our minds in order that the fine wine of creativity results. Our hope is that The Secret Chord, by exploring artistic dilemmas from a range of different perspectives, will mature in reader’s minds just like fine wine or a precious pearl.”
“Secret Chord is an interesting and impassioned study of the role of music in cultural life, written through the prism of Christian belief. Covering a huge range of musical styles and influences, from gospel music to X Factor, Secret Chord conveys a great enthusiasm for music and its transformative powers, which readers are sure to find engaging.” Carol Biss, Managing Director of Book Guild Publishing
"Secret Chord is well written, full of wisdom, great quotes and illustrations. It's great to read something about art and Christianity that embraces such diverse material." Rev Dr Hugh
Rayment-Pickard, author and co-founder of IntoUniversity .
Peter and Jonathan say, "While a significant number of books have been published exploring the relationships between music, art, popular culture and theology - many of which we have enjoyed and from which we have benefited - such books tend either to academic analysis or semi biography about artistes whose output the writers' enjoy. By contrast, The Secret Chord is an accessible exploration of artistic dilemmas from a range of different perspectives which seeks to draw the reader into a place of appreciation for what makes a moment in a 'performance' timeless and special."
The Secret Chord is available initially on Kindle (http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Secret-Chord-ebook/dp/B009OG5790/), price £1.95. Those without a Kindle can download a free Kindle PC programme at http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_ln_ar?docId=1000423913.
The Secret Chord website can be found at http://www.thesecretchord.co.uk and will be developed over time to enable further exploration of the issues raised.
Peter Banks is a successful composer and musician with mainstream chart successes in many countries in the world within his most well known musical collaboration, 'After The Fire'. As well as a musician he has worked in other creative industries and now contributes professionally to various online publications as well as his popular music and technology blog, The BanksyBoy Brief.
Thursday, 20 May 2010
Approaches to church-based exhibitions
Jonathan Evens has a review in the latest issue of Art & Christianity. Although a review of the Resurrection exhibition held by Christian Arts at Bury St Edmonds, the piece also questions, as a stimulus to debate, approaches taken by Christian arts organisations such as Christian Arts and commission4mission to the church-based exhibitions we organise.
The section of the review dealing with these questions and issues is as follows:
"Having recently organised several similar church-based exhibitions of art by artists explicitly viewing themselves and their art as ‘Christian’, the experience of viewing Resurrection also raised a series of issues and questions which are generic to this type of venture.
Here church space was made over into gallery space as the display panels used formed ‘white cubes’. However, if the art were to be integrated into the variety of spaces offered by such a large church would that not enable the art to more readily enhance the ongoing worship life of the church, which otherwise happens around the art instead of with it? Would it not also thereby demonstrate the value of commissioning such works as this generation’s contribution to the ongoing accrual of art which occurs in most churches over the ages?
Such exhibitions highlight the extent to which many artists continue to engage with the Christian faith, its narratives and imagery, and value the opportunities which churches can provide for their work to be seen and appraised by the wider Christian community. Our cathedrals and some central city churches now regularly engage with artists that have national or international reputations both challenging such artists to respond to faith and being challenged by their responses. Parish churches can potentially play a similar role in relation to artists with currently local and/or regional reputations and could do much more to provide both the lifeline of support and encouragement combined with spaces for the practice and exhibition of art in a wide variety of forms.
The exhibitions we organise could also adopt more radical models, perhaps drawing on the experience of the Roman Catholic Church in Poland and it’s engagement with the idea of ‘Sacrum’ in Polish Art during the 1980’s. There, martial law forced virtually the entire artistic community to boycott the official exhibition spaces and the only other places which found approval among independent artistic and intellectual groups were the churches. So, that was where artistic meetings, shows and exhibitions were held with most significant Polish artists and art figures participating in them, and only a very few steering away from addressing religious themes.
Our cultural and political situation is clearly very different but, if we understood consumerism to be the major force of our culture (and one in which the contemporary art establishment is implicated), could exhibitions held in and organised by churches, instead of simply recreating gallery space in church space, not form a more radical alternative to the consumerist practices of the contemporary art establishment by working with artists who themselves challenge consumerism and challenging those, like myself, in Christian arts organisations to do likewise?"
The section of the review dealing with these questions and issues is as follows:
"Having recently organised several similar church-based exhibitions of art by artists explicitly viewing themselves and their art as ‘Christian’, the experience of viewing Resurrection also raised a series of issues and questions which are generic to this type of venture.
Here church space was made over into gallery space as the display panels used formed ‘white cubes’. However, if the art were to be integrated into the variety of spaces offered by such a large church would that not enable the art to more readily enhance the ongoing worship life of the church, which otherwise happens around the art instead of with it? Would it not also thereby demonstrate the value of commissioning such works as this generation’s contribution to the ongoing accrual of art which occurs in most churches over the ages?
Such exhibitions highlight the extent to which many artists continue to engage with the Christian faith, its narratives and imagery, and value the opportunities which churches can provide for their work to be seen and appraised by the wider Christian community. Our cathedrals and some central city churches now regularly engage with artists that have national or international reputations both challenging such artists to respond to faith and being challenged by their responses. Parish churches can potentially play a similar role in relation to artists with currently local and/or regional reputations and could do much more to provide both the lifeline of support and encouragement combined with spaces for the practice and exhibition of art in a wide variety of forms.
The exhibitions we organise could also adopt more radical models, perhaps drawing on the experience of the Roman Catholic Church in Poland and it’s engagement with the idea of ‘Sacrum’ in Polish Art during the 1980’s. There, martial law forced virtually the entire artistic community to boycott the official exhibition spaces and the only other places which found approval among independent artistic and intellectual groups were the churches. So, that was where artistic meetings, shows and exhibitions were held with most significant Polish artists and art figures participating in them, and only a very few steering away from addressing religious themes.
Our cultural and political situation is clearly very different but, if we understood consumerism to be the major force of our culture (and one in which the contemporary art establishment is implicated), could exhibitions held in and organised by churches, instead of simply recreating gallery space in church space, not form a more radical alternative to the consumerist practices of the contemporary art establishment by working with artists who themselves challenge consumerism and challenging those, like myself, in Christian arts organisations to do likewise?"
Saturday, 16 May 2009
Airbrushed from Art History?
Jonathan Evens is asking for help with a Personal Development project that he is currently undertaking.
The project involves him firstly in reviewing and updating his reading on Christian influences on Modern and Contemporary Art and secondly in posting summaries of these influences at his blog. He is calling the series of posts 'Airbrushed from Art History?' as his basic contention is that these influences have been consistently overlooked or ignored in art histories.
Your help, if you are able to give it, would be to comment on these posts, as and when you are able, as people able to critique or develop the ideas and information summarised in the posts.
Jonathan's aim is to systematise and develop his thinking on this theme and make use of the material generated in Study Days and other events to be organised in future by Commission For Mission. The series of posts will potentially also form a useful source of reference for those interested in this topic.
The project involves him firstly in reviewing and updating his reading on Christian influences on Modern and Contemporary Art and secondly in posting summaries of these influences at his blog. He is calling the series of posts 'Airbrushed from Art History?' as his basic contention is that these influences have been consistently overlooked or ignored in art histories.
Your help, if you are able to give it, would be to comment on these posts, as and when you are able, as people able to critique or develop the ideas and information summarised in the posts.
Jonathan's aim is to systematise and develop his thinking on this theme and make use of the material generated in Study Days and other events to be organised in future by Commission For Mission. The series of posts will potentially also form a useful source of reference for those interested in this topic.
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Interviews with C4M Patron & Founder
David Hawkins, the Bishop of Barking, is himself a practising artist as well as being Patron of Commission For Mission. His views on art and the need for the Church to re-engage with the arts can be read in a three-part intervew by clicking here, here and here.
Henry Shelton is the founder of Commision For Mission and a professional fine artist. Henry has also been interviewed for Commission For Mission and his interview can be found by clicking here and here.
“I think there is a big need to re-engage with the Arts. The Church has had a lengthy and happy marriage with the Arts in the past but needs more artists. I agree with Rowan Williams that ‘artists are special people and every person is a special kind of artist’.” David Hawkins
“The purpose of Commission For Mission is to promote modern Christian Art in all its forms and by doing so raise money for charity. I want us to be offering quality work and craftsmanship, rather than mass-produced work, to continue the legacy of the Church as a great commissioner of art.” Henry Shelton
Henry Shelton is the founder of Commision For Mission and a professional fine artist. Henry has also been interviewed for Commission For Mission and his interview can be found by clicking here and here.
“I think there is a big need to re-engage with the Arts. The Church has had a lengthy and happy marriage with the Arts in the past but needs more artists. I agree with Rowan Williams that ‘artists are special people and every person is a special kind of artist’.” David Hawkins
“The purpose of Commission For Mission is to promote modern Christian Art in all its forms and by doing so raise money for charity. I want us to be offering quality work and craftsmanship, rather than mass-produced work, to continue the legacy of the Church as a great commissioner of art.” Henry Shelton
Wednesday, 1 April 2009
Jonathan Evens
Mark of the Cross
I AM LoveJonathan Evens paints in a symbolic expressionist style and has facilitated the involvement of churches in a range of public art projects. His arts journalism has featured in publications including 'Art & Christianity' and 'The Church Times'. He is also a creative writer (meditations, poetry, short stories, and a blog) and the Vicar of St John the Evangelist Seven Kings. Jonathan is the Secretary of Commission for Mission.
Jonathan's paintings can be viewed on the Veritasse website by clicking here. More information about all of Jonathan's creative projects can be found on his blog at: http://joninbetween.blogspot.com/.
Each week he posts a new photograph in his 'Windows on the World' series on his blog. Past images from this series (each of which feature a foreground object framing a background view to suggest the way in which we each see the world from a specific perspective while also simultaneously perceiving something beyond) can be viewed by clicking on the photographs tab in the blog index.
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