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ART 352
Redeemer University College, Fall 2009
Prof. Christopher M. Cuthill
ext. 4523
How does our faith bear upon our understanding of art(s)? What is the significance of art(s) in our post-modern culture? How can the church become more in tune with the aesthetic dimension of life? What are the challenges facing Christian artists today? These and other questions will be explored in weekly seminars.
ccuthil@redeemer.on.ca
profcuthill@gmail.com
Office 239D
He for sure was helpful specifically for me and my paper on Gerard (once he realized I was not asking about paint). It's interesting because what he said on looking a whole body of work rather than just one piece was exactly what Gerard said as well.
ReplyDeleteI said this in class but I really appreciated Seerveld's comments about helping others to understand a work of art. I asked my artist (Maria Gabankova) about that in my interview and she agreed with Seerveld. Although an artwork should portray its message in its allusive and creative way, sometimes in love we can help others to interact with the artwork, especially if they have not had much exposure to art. I think that this idea of discussion and interaction between artwork, artists, viewers and critics is extremely important if we want to work towards reestablishing a connection between arts and the church. Especially within the Protestant tradition where images have been suspect and have sometimes been rejected, those who have studied art and visual expression need to be available and willing to help others participate in the dialogue.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who is consistently struggling with the idea of art as a calling, I found Seerveld’s insights into the responsibilities of the artist particularly useful. His view was that it is the artist’s responsibility to both God and to our audience to be the best that we can be. If you are going to be a painter, it is your job to be the best painter that you can be. If you are a dancer, it is your responsibility to be the best dancer you can be. It is demanded that we invest in ourselves and in our God-given abilities to bring them to full fruition. This was a much needed lesson for me, as I often struggle with the validity of investing in my craft. At times, it feels selfish to me. It was good to hear that, according to Seerveld, growing as an artist is not only something that I should do; it is something that I must do.
ReplyDeleteI was also really encouraged and appriciated with what Krista spoke about- our responsibility to be "good artists". But I was also impressed and intrigued with the concept of artists being "dated and located". It has got me thinking more of how my context affects me and how I illustrate my date and location through what I do. I find it facinating how to see how artistic expressions are the products of a mixture specific cultural and personal experiences. It goes to show again, we are imbedded in a story, culturally, communally and personally.
ReplyDeleteI did not get the pleasure of listening and discussing with Calvin Seerveld this time, though I have had the chance on a previous occasion. Something I have discovered is that not all people are called to be artists. Personally I don't think that I was meant to attend class to become a visual artist, but to learn something about artists' relationship to church and culture and how it is our responsibility as Christians to interact with our surroundings. Art is one way of displaying our gratitude and our reaction to what's going down in this world. I've always admired the art found in museums and art galleries and always think to myself "those are the true artists", hardly remembering that art is still in flux today as it always has been. Something I need to remember is that the gift of art is very real in this context. "dated and located"...I have heard those words before in my creative writing class at Redeemer High School. The assignment was to write sonnets like Shakespeare would. I found that I struggled and struggled with this, and came to the conclusion that I am not and never will be a great poet. Thinking back now, I see that Shakespeare was as good as he was because he lived, ate and breathed in that time period. Maybe I'm not supposed to mimic other artists, but embrace my own culture and see what happens.
ReplyDeleteAfter Dr. Seerveld had finished answering questions with the larger group, I asked him what his thoughts were on artists creating art that was solely for the church. I've been struggling with that for a while and wanted to hear his opinion on whether or not this was alright. His answer to me was that if an artist struggles with working outside of a church context that's ok... as long as that artist doesn't make that the norm for other artists. Our discussion was very helpful, and after our talk, I think that if God calls an artist to operate strictly within a church context we should be thankful for that artist trying to redeem the arts within the church.
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