Since its inauguration in 2001, the Overseas Ministries Study Center artist in residence program has hosted outstanding Asian Christian artists: Sawai Chinnawong; Marit Kartveit; Hae Sook Chung; Jae-Im Kim; Nyoman Darsane; He Qi; Emmanuel Garibay; Wisnu Sasongko; Huibing He; Hanna Varghese; Nalini Jayasuriya; and Soichi Watanabe.
With initial assistance from the Foundation for Theological Education in Asia, this unique program has been further supported by a special fund honoring the memory and sustaining the artistic vision of the late Paul T. Lauby (1925-2003). Dr. Lauby, an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ, taught at Silliman University in the Philippines from 1953 to 1968, and then served in New York City as president of the United Board for Higher Education in Asia from 1969 until his retirement in 1989. His interest in Asian Christian art and artists was well known, and he did much to encourage the development of emerging artists.
This program has enriched the local Christian and art communities in New Haven as well as the international sacred art milieu, including the Summer 2007 exhibition "The Christian Story: Five Asian Artists Today," held at MOBIA (Museum of Biblical Art) in New York City, which featured four former artists in residence.
Re-imagining Theologies: Asian/American Artists and Faith is currently at the Walls-Ortiz Gallery and Center and features work by Asian and Asian-American Christian artists: David Chang, Sawai Chinnawong, Deborah Fung, Emmanuel Garibay, Huibing He, Nalini Jarasuriya, Karen An-Hwei Lee, Carrie Myers, Wisnu Sasongko, and Hanna Varghese. Their art offers multiple perspectives on Christian faith across cultures, and implicitly addresses outdated assumptions that “most good ideas, including Christian ones, flow outward from the West.”
The Asian artists featured here from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, are “part of the great reversal now taking place, joyfully bringing the Good News back to societies now jaded by outworn theologies and wearied by irrelevant, conformist 'churchianity.” Together with their Asian-American colleagues with roots in China, Korea, Japan, and the Philippines, these artists re-imagine what poet Karen An-Hwei Lee calls “theophanies. . . or God visible in our world.”
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Karen An-Hwei Lee - On Hierophany.
Showing posts with label qi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label qi. Show all posts
Friday, 8 May 2015
Sunday, 13 March 2011
Airbrushed from Art History (21)
Daniel Johnson Fleming wrote that his book Each with His Own Brush: Contemporary Christian Art in Asia and Africa (Friendship Press New York, 1938) was "the first attempt … to bring together pictures of Christian paintings from various lands." He wrote:
"Now that Christianity has become ecumenical (or, in the literal sense of this word, has gained a foothold in all parts of the inhabited earth), one expectantly surveys the younger Christian communities of the world to see what use the church has made of form and color in the expression of her life and faith. This expansion of Christianity into the non-Christian world opens up a new significant period, not only in the expression of the spirit but also in art."
Fr. Sergio Ticozzi, PIME, wrote in Tripod in 2008 that "the new schools of Christian painting in China, Japan, Korea, Indochina, Indonesia and India … succeeded in translating with the brush all the poetry of their art, so spiritual, and celebratory of the Christian mysteries. Theirs is an art perfectly Christian and deeply indigenous!" Similarly, Fr. Joseph Schad, SJ, has written that: "The history of the Society of Jesus is marked with examples of Jesuits encouraging indigenous artists to take Christian imagery and make it their own. In India, the Philippines, Japan, Mexico, and Paraguay, this process found beautiful and powerful expression in religious art."
Archbishop Celso Costantini (1876-1958, later a Cardinal), who was the Apostolic Delegate to China beginning in 1922, was one of those who sought to inculturate the Christian faith in indigenous cultures. His own artistic talent and expertise in the fields of sculpture and architecture greatly contributed to his efforts. He wrote in 1940:
"One day, in 1929, I went to visit in Peiping the personal exhibition of the painter Chen Yuandu. I noticed that this young artist showed a special mastery of his craft, good talent, together with a very solid background in the national style of painting. What I enjoyed most was the spirit and poetry that his paintings expressed. It could be said that he turned lines into scale and the colors into music. I invited him to come to the Delegation's quarters, and I talked to him about the Virgin Mary and the Bible. I showed him several pictures of the early Italian painters and handed him religious works of art for study. After a few days, he painted a picture of the Virgin Mary adoring the Child Jesus, and showed it to me. This beautiful picture in the Chinese style, which has been published in almost all the missionary magazines, became the first symbol of the new Chinese Catholic painting. At Pentecost in 1932, Mr. Chen received baptism and joined the Catholic Church, taking the name of Luke."
Fr. Ticozzi continued the story: "Luke Chen Yuandu (Chen Xu, 1902/03-1967) was later invited to teach in the Art Department of Furen [Fu Jen] Catholic University in Beijing. He formed a group of Catholic artists. Their work has enjoyed considerable success, both in Beijing and in the West. Among his students were Lu Hong Nian, Wang Su Da, Zeng San, Xu Qi Hua, Monica Liu, and other artists. The Art Department of Furen Catholic University produced more than 180 works of Christian art. From 1935 to 1938, the Art Department organized three exhibitions each year for consecutive years. In 1938, at the instigation of Mgr. Costantini, it also organized and conducted a series of itinerary exhibitions in Budapest, Vienna and the Vatican (Rome)."
Fr. Schad wrote about the mission work among the Aborigine peoples undertaken through the Kutjungka Catholic Church at Wirramanu in the Balgo Hills, Australia:
"The bright, acrylic paintings of Balgo are much like stained-glass windows that tell bible stories through brightly colored pieces of glass. The … placement of these articles and figures, the colors, and Aboriginal design elements give an extraordinary character to these works ...
In the works of certain artists, such as Matthew Gill, this integration and interplay of Aboriginal and Christian imagery occurs … successfully and beautifully. Using the earthy reds, yellow ochres, and black and white of traditional cave drawings, Matthew Gill produces striking images of biblical narrative, such as the parable of the Prodigal Son and Pentecost. His paintings have been exhibited in Australia and abroad, but some of his most important initial works hang in the church in Balgo ...
Gracie Mosquito, another artist who lives and works in Wirramanu, is an active member of the parish. Her earlier works, some created in collaboration with other artists, portray similar Christian themes. One of her banners depicts the Holy Spirit as a beautiful bird rendered in pastels, reminiscent of Native American design. There are streams of tear-like drops seemingly emitting from the body of the creature. When asked about the meaning of these stylized droplets, she said that they were blessings flowing from God that envelop the Spirit and are simultaneously "sent out" from the Holy Ghost to all Christians ...
Linda Syddick … lives in a community just outside Alice Springs, more than 500 miles east of Wirramanu. Her works masterfully incorporate a classic dot design in untraditional color combinations. A catalogue describes one of Linda's more explicitly Christian works as a depiction of "the spirits of Aborigines in heaven praying for Aboriginal people on earth." This same overtly religious aspect of Linda's work is also apparent in some of her other paintings, most notably a representation of the Ascension, in which Christ, poised for flight, is brilliantly clothed in yellow ochre robes punctuated with golden crosses, all pointing toward heaven."
The ELC Art and Craft Centre at Rorke’s Drift, Natal, was established in 1962 and had a significant impact on the development of South African art and craft in the 1960s and 1970s. This influence continued in the 1980s, through the graduated students who have filtered into many areas of South African cultural life. Graduates of the ELC Fine Art Course have gone on to work as administrators and educators at virtually all of the existing art centres in the country.
The Art and Craft Centre was established in 1962 by Swedish artists Ulla and Peder Gowenius, who were employed by the Church of Swedish Mission. A Fine Art School was included in the activities and during its 20 years of existence many students from all over of Southern Africa have attended of which many have won national and international acclaim. Rorke's Drift has been the home of worlds famous artists like John Muafangejo, Azaria Mbatha, Bongi Dlomo, Pat Mautla and others and today there are such recognised artists and crafters like the weavers Philda Majozi, Emma Dammann, in the ceramic studio like Gordon Mbatha, Joel Sibisi, Elizabeth Mbatha.
Such initiatives led over time to the formation of Christian Art Associations such as the Asian Christian Art
Association (ACAA) which was founded in 1978 to encourage the visual arts in Asian churches:
"At that first consultation of artists in Bali, the aims of the Association were clearly stated, as follows:
" To encourage artists to express Christian concern through their art in an Asian context.
" To coordinate the activities of individuals and groups in the Asian region who are working on indigenous
art forms.
" To provide a means of communication and information.
" To work with churches, with the Christian Conferences of Asia and with other bodies seeking to witness to Christian faith in Asia.
This association was the result of many conversations between artists and theologians in Asia. Theologians who appreciate the creative mind of the artists as expressed in their works have also inspired and helped artists in their theological reflections which are manifest in their paintings, sculptures and dances. The Christian Conference of Asia has played a significant role in facilitating the birth of this very important ecumenical association of artists in Asia, which has enriched the ecumenical movement globally.
In the last twenty years, many exhibitions have been held not only in Asian countries, but also in Europe,
North America and Australia. Members have been assisted to exhibit their works nationally and internationally." (WEA Connections, September 2010)
Several books, such as Christian Art in Asia, Bible through Asian Eyes, and Christ for All People: Celebrating a World of Christian Art, have been produced by those, such as Masao Takenaka and Ron O’Grady, who have been involved in ACAA and which testify to the mission and talent of numerous artists worldwide.
Three significant artists with links to ACAA include He Qi, Jyoti Sahi and Sadao Watanabe:
Jide Chord - Romeo and Juliet.
"Now that Christianity has become ecumenical (or, in the literal sense of this word, has gained a foothold in all parts of the inhabited earth), one expectantly surveys the younger Christian communities of the world to see what use the church has made of form and color in the expression of her life and faith. This expansion of Christianity into the non-Christian world opens up a new significant period, not only in the expression of the spirit but also in art."
Fr. Sergio Ticozzi, PIME, wrote in Tripod in 2008 that "the new schools of Christian painting in China, Japan, Korea, Indochina, Indonesia and India … succeeded in translating with the brush all the poetry of their art, so spiritual, and celebratory of the Christian mysteries. Theirs is an art perfectly Christian and deeply indigenous!" Similarly, Fr. Joseph Schad, SJ, has written that: "The history of the Society of Jesus is marked with examples of Jesuits encouraging indigenous artists to take Christian imagery and make it their own. In India, the Philippines, Japan, Mexico, and Paraguay, this process found beautiful and powerful expression in religious art."
Archbishop Celso Costantini (1876-1958, later a Cardinal), who was the Apostolic Delegate to China beginning in 1922, was one of those who sought to inculturate the Christian faith in indigenous cultures. His own artistic talent and expertise in the fields of sculpture and architecture greatly contributed to his efforts. He wrote in 1940:
"One day, in 1929, I went to visit in Peiping the personal exhibition of the painter Chen Yuandu. I noticed that this young artist showed a special mastery of his craft, good talent, together with a very solid background in the national style of painting. What I enjoyed most was the spirit and poetry that his paintings expressed. It could be said that he turned lines into scale and the colors into music. I invited him to come to the Delegation's quarters, and I talked to him about the Virgin Mary and the Bible. I showed him several pictures of the early Italian painters and handed him religious works of art for study. After a few days, he painted a picture of the Virgin Mary adoring the Child Jesus, and showed it to me. This beautiful picture in the Chinese style, which has been published in almost all the missionary magazines, became the first symbol of the new Chinese Catholic painting. At Pentecost in 1932, Mr. Chen received baptism and joined the Catholic Church, taking the name of Luke."
Fr. Ticozzi continued the story: "Luke Chen Yuandu (Chen Xu, 1902/03-1967) was later invited to teach in the Art Department of Furen [Fu Jen] Catholic University in Beijing. He formed a group of Catholic artists. Their work has enjoyed considerable success, both in Beijing and in the West. Among his students were Lu Hong Nian, Wang Su Da, Zeng San, Xu Qi Hua, Monica Liu, and other artists. The Art Department of Furen Catholic University produced more than 180 works of Christian art. From 1935 to 1938, the Art Department organized three exhibitions each year for consecutive years. In 1938, at the instigation of Mgr. Costantini, it also organized and conducted a series of itinerary exhibitions in Budapest, Vienna and the Vatican (Rome)."
Fr. Schad wrote about the mission work among the Aborigine peoples undertaken through the Kutjungka Catholic Church at Wirramanu in the Balgo Hills, Australia:
"The bright, acrylic paintings of Balgo are much like stained-glass windows that tell bible stories through brightly colored pieces of glass. The … placement of these articles and figures, the colors, and Aboriginal design elements give an extraordinary character to these works ...
In the works of certain artists, such as Matthew Gill, this integration and interplay of Aboriginal and Christian imagery occurs … successfully and beautifully. Using the earthy reds, yellow ochres, and black and white of traditional cave drawings, Matthew Gill produces striking images of biblical narrative, such as the parable of the Prodigal Son and Pentecost. His paintings have been exhibited in Australia and abroad, but some of his most important initial works hang in the church in Balgo ...
Gracie Mosquito, another artist who lives and works in Wirramanu, is an active member of the parish. Her earlier works, some created in collaboration with other artists, portray similar Christian themes. One of her banners depicts the Holy Spirit as a beautiful bird rendered in pastels, reminiscent of Native American design. There are streams of tear-like drops seemingly emitting from the body of the creature. When asked about the meaning of these stylized droplets, she said that they were blessings flowing from God that envelop the Spirit and are simultaneously "sent out" from the Holy Ghost to all Christians ...
Linda Syddick … lives in a community just outside Alice Springs, more than 500 miles east of Wirramanu. Her works masterfully incorporate a classic dot design in untraditional color combinations. A catalogue describes one of Linda's more explicitly Christian works as a depiction of "the spirits of Aborigines in heaven praying for Aboriginal people on earth." This same overtly religious aspect of Linda's work is also apparent in some of her other paintings, most notably a representation of the Ascension, in which Christ, poised for flight, is brilliantly clothed in yellow ochre robes punctuated with golden crosses, all pointing toward heaven."
The ELC Art and Craft Centre at Rorke’s Drift, Natal, was established in 1962 and had a significant impact on the development of South African art and craft in the 1960s and 1970s. This influence continued in the 1980s, through the graduated students who have filtered into many areas of South African cultural life. Graduates of the ELC Fine Art Course have gone on to work as administrators and educators at virtually all of the existing art centres in the country.
The Art and Craft Centre was established in 1962 by Swedish artists Ulla and Peder Gowenius, who were employed by the Church of Swedish Mission. A Fine Art School was included in the activities and during its 20 years of existence many students from all over of Southern Africa have attended of which many have won national and international acclaim. Rorke's Drift has been the home of worlds famous artists like John Muafangejo, Azaria Mbatha, Bongi Dlomo, Pat Mautla and others and today there are such recognised artists and crafters like the weavers Philda Majozi, Emma Dammann, in the ceramic studio like Gordon Mbatha, Joel Sibisi, Elizabeth Mbatha.
Such initiatives led over time to the formation of Christian Art Associations such as the Asian Christian Art
Association (ACAA) which was founded in 1978 to encourage the visual arts in Asian churches:
"At that first consultation of artists in Bali, the aims of the Association were clearly stated, as follows:
" To encourage artists to express Christian concern through their art in an Asian context.
" To coordinate the activities of individuals and groups in the Asian region who are working on indigenous
art forms.
" To provide a means of communication and information.
" To work with churches, with the Christian Conferences of Asia and with other bodies seeking to witness to Christian faith in Asia.
This association was the result of many conversations between artists and theologians in Asia. Theologians who appreciate the creative mind of the artists as expressed in their works have also inspired and helped artists in their theological reflections which are manifest in their paintings, sculptures and dances. The Christian Conference of Asia has played a significant role in facilitating the birth of this very important ecumenical association of artists in Asia, which has enriched the ecumenical movement globally.
In the last twenty years, many exhibitions have been held not only in Asian countries, but also in Europe,
North America and Australia. Members have been assisted to exhibit their works nationally and internationally." (WEA Connections, September 2010)
Several books, such as Christian Art in Asia, Bible through Asian Eyes, and Christ for All People: Celebrating a World of Christian Art, have been produced by those, such as Masao Takenaka and Ron O’Grady, who have been involved in ACAA and which testify to the mission and talent of numerous artists worldwide.
Three significant artists with links to ACAA include He Qi, Jyoti Sahi and Sadao Watanabe:
- "He Qi was a professor at the Nanjing Union Theological Seminary and a tutor for master candidate students in the Philosophy Department of Nanjing University. He is also a member of the China Art Association and a council member of the ACAA. He has been committed to the artistic creation of modern Chinese Christian Art since 1983. He hopes to help change the "foreign image" of Christianity in China by using artistic language, and at the same time, to supplement Chinese Art the way Buddhist art did in ancient times. In his works, He Qi has blended together Chinese folk customs and traditional Chinese painting techniques with the western art of the Middle and Modern Ages, and has created an artistic style of colour-on-paper painting."
- "Jyoti Sahi was born in 1944 in Pune and studied art for four years in London, at the Camberwell school of Arts and Crafts. On returning to India, he taught art at the American International School in Delhi, and the Blue Mountains School in Ooty, South India. In 1967 Jyoti joined Dom Bede Griffiths, and Laurie Baker at Kurisumala Ashram in Kerala, where there was the idea to create a community of people interested in relating Indian Christian life to the cultural traditions of India. Jyoti set up the Indian School of Art for Peace (INSCAPE) in 1983, with the idea of relating art to Indian spirituality. Jyoti has been running art workshops, and art retreats for groups who want to relate art practices and spiritual insights in the Indian context. Groups of students as well as pilgrims to Indian Ashrams have spent time at the Art Ashram exploring the creative dimensions of their life, using extended art practices as a means to self discovery."
- "Born in Tokyo in 1913, Sadao Watanabe began by specializing in the art of "Katazome" (stencil printing). He studied under Soetsu Yanagi and Keisuke Serizawa. In 1947 he won the first prize from the Japan Folk Art Museum; and the Kokugokai Prize in 1948. A one-man show was held at the Portland Art Museum in 1962 and his works were exhibited in the Modern Print Show at the 1972 Winter Olympics, Sapporo, Japan. Taught printmaking in Oregon and Minnesota and in 1976 visit America again at the invitation of the Lutheran Church. One man show at the Grace Cathedral, San Francisco in 1977. In 1981, received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Linfield College, Oregon. Watanabe's works are in numerous collections including the New York Museum of Modern Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Honolulu Academy of Arts and the Vatican Museum of Modern Religious Art."
Jide Chord - Romeo and Juliet.
Tuesday, 18 May 2010
Highlights & new works for the Methodist Collection of Art
Wallspace is about to embark on their fourth year of operation with an exciting world premier of new painting for what has been described as “the best denominational collection of modern art outside the Vatican.”
The Collection: Highlights and new works for the Methodist collection of modern and contemporary art
23 June – 16 July 2010. Wallspace, All Hallows on the Wall, 83 London Wall, EC2M 5ND
Tuesday - Friday 12am – 6pm. Saturday 11am – 4pm. Nearest tube Liverpool Street or Moorgate. For directions go to www.wallspace.org.uk. Admission free.
Wallspace is delighted to host some great paintings from this remarkable collection. It is part of their vision to bring significant works of contemporary art to the City of London – and the fact that this exhibition will form part of the City of London Festival’s annual celebration of the arts is a real bonus.
This exhibition is the first opportunity to see significant new acquisitions and loans from major artists such as Craigie Aitchison, Susie Hamilton, Clive Hicks-Jenkins, Peter Howson, David Jones, John Muafangejo, He Qi, Sadao Watanabe and Roger Wagner.
Methodist Publishing and the Collection trustees will also take this opportunity to launch the new Guide to the Collection with an introduction by art critic and former Turner Prize judge Richard Cork.
During The Collection Wallspace will be hosting a number of special events. Here are just some of them:
The Collection: Highlights and new works for the Methodist collection of modern and contemporary art
23 June – 16 July 2010. Wallspace, All Hallows on the Wall, 83 London Wall, EC2M 5ND
Tuesday - Friday 12am – 6pm. Saturday 11am – 4pm. Nearest tube Liverpool Street or Moorgate. For directions go to www.wallspace.org.uk. Admission free.
Wallspace is delighted to host some great paintings from this remarkable collection. It is part of their vision to bring significant works of contemporary art to the City of London – and the fact that this exhibition will form part of the City of London Festival’s annual celebration of the arts is a real bonus.
This exhibition is the first opportunity to see significant new acquisitions and loans from major artists such as Craigie Aitchison, Susie Hamilton, Clive Hicks-Jenkins, Peter Howson, David Jones, John Muafangejo, He Qi, Sadao Watanabe and Roger Wagner.
Methodist Publishing and the Collection trustees will also take this opportunity to launch the new Guide to the Collection with an introduction by art critic and former Turner Prize judge Richard Cork.
During The Collection Wallspace will be hosting a number of special events. Here are just some of them:
- Artists' evening - Thursday 24 June, 7 – 9pm. Sold your Soul? Artists and collectors discuss their different perspectives on acquiring, or being acquired for, a collection. Open to all artists.
- Bible Society Reception and Tour of the Exhibition - 29 June, 7 – 9pm. An opportunity to view this unique collection of modern and contemporary art on the life of Christ, in the company of Luke Walton, Culture Programme Manager, Bible Society and Meryl Doney, exhibition curator and Director of Wallspace.
- Friends of the Methodist Art Collection - Thursday 1 July, 6.30 for 7 – 9pm. Reception and special viewing of the exhibition with an opportunity to meet some of the artists with works in the Collection. All welcome.
- Methodist Churches Late Opening - Tuesday 6 July, 6 – 8pm. Late night opening and tour of the exhibition, for members of all London Methodist churches.
- Moot Community Visit - Wednesday 7 July, 7.35 – 8.30. Late night opening for members of Moot Community, St Edmund the King & St Mary Woolnoth, Lombard Street EC3V 9EA.
Part of the City of London Festival programme 21 June – 9 July 2010. See http://irun.yourcrm.co.uk/app/e/l/289292/13105/367/22886.aspx for details.
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Sufjan Stevens - The Transfiguration.
Tuesday, 12 February 2008
Biblical Art: An International A-Z - Part 3
Art histories rarely focus on modern sacred or religious art, giving the impression that the visual arts in the twentieth century were predominantly secular. This represents a Western view of art history which can itself be challenged and which completely overlooks the significant development of Biblical Art in Asia and Africa throughout this period and on into the contemporary scene. The following A-Z attempts to provide a brief sample of some of the artists and organisations that create and support Biblical Art in Asia and Africa:
He Qi (b. 1950): Qi’s vibrant biblical paintings blend together Chinese folk customs and traditional painting techniques with the western art of the Middle Ages and Modern period. He hopes to help change the "foreign image" of Christianity in China by using artistic language, and at the same time, to supplement Chinese art as Buddhist art did in ancient times.
Rorke's Drift Art School: played an important role in the development of art produced by black South Africans. Artists were trained in the use of linocut, etching and aquatint. Founded as the Evangelical Lutheran Church Arts and Craft Centre in 1962 by the Church of Sweden Mission, its pupils included Azaria Mbatha, Cyprian Shilakoe, Vuminkosi Zulu, and Gabi Nkosi.
Sacrum: A term coined by the Polish critic and art historian, Janusz Bogucki to describe the meeting of spiritual themes and Polish avant-garde artists. In the 1980s Bogucki organised a series of art exhibitions in Catholic Churches, the most famous being the 1983 exhibition, The Sign of the Cross, at the Church of God’s Mercy in Warsaw which brought together over fifty artists and photographers together with actors, musicians, art theorists, and filmmakers.
Alfred D. Thomas: an Anglican, from Uttar Pradesh in India, who depicted Christ’s life and ministry. His Christ had the ideal male body of classical Indian sculptures, with broad shoulders and narrow waist. An Indian art critic wrote that, “Thomas’s pictures of the Christ as child, man and divine-man are unique in their true oriental colouring and sentiment.”
Hatigammana Uttarananda (b. 1954): a Buddhist monk who has been influenced by Catholic theologian Aloysius Pieris. Through his interest in liberation theology, Uttarananda is aware of the way in which Jesus broke down barriers between people and consistently depicts this aspect of Christ ministry in paintings based on the Gospel narratives.
Hanna Cheriyan Varghese: a Malaysian artist who began painting on biblical themes after being inspired by works she saw in the ACAA’s Image magazine. Varghese dyes batik cloth pictures and paints in acrylics. She has said that, “Art is the expressive cry of the soul. All of us have that urge in one form or another. Discover it; nurture it.”
Sadao Watanabe (1913 - 1996): created paintings of biblical narratives in the paste-resist stencil dying technique of Japanese Folk Art called katazome. Reflecting both his folk and faith roots Watanabe said of his paintings, “I would most like to see them hanging where people ordinarily gather, because Jesus brought the gospel for the people.”
Ruben Xulu (1942 - 1985): taught to carve by sculptor Bernard Gwensa and encouraged by Father Kinch, of the Roman Catholic Mission of the Good Shepherd, Hlabisa in South Africa, Xulu and Gwensa produced many sculptures for this church and other mission churches in the area. Xulu’s Christ-Crucified is informed by his own silent resignation to God’s will after he lost his hearing as a child.
Yasantha Boange (b. 1945): Sri Lankan wood carver who has been greatly inspired by religious themes and, for whom, wood carving has deepened his understanding of religion.
Vuminkosi Zulu (1948 – 1996): a Rorke’s Drift graphic artist, his work was brought to international attention when a German Lutheran priest based in Switzerland began to collect Zulu’s works and use them to illustrate his sermons. Zulu’s work was exhibited in Germany, Sweden and the USA, as well as within South Africa.
He Qi (b. 1950): Qi’s vibrant biblical paintings blend together Chinese folk customs and traditional painting techniques with the western art of the Middle Ages and Modern period. He hopes to help change the "foreign image" of Christianity in China by using artistic language, and at the same time, to supplement Chinese art as Buddhist art did in ancient times.
Rorke's Drift Art School: played an important role in the development of art produced by black South Africans. Artists were trained in the use of linocut, etching and aquatint. Founded as the Evangelical Lutheran Church Arts and Craft Centre in 1962 by the Church of Sweden Mission, its pupils included Azaria Mbatha, Cyprian Shilakoe, Vuminkosi Zulu, and Gabi Nkosi.
Sacrum: A term coined by the Polish critic and art historian, Janusz Bogucki to describe the meeting of spiritual themes and Polish avant-garde artists. In the 1980s Bogucki organised a series of art exhibitions in Catholic Churches, the most famous being the 1983 exhibition, The Sign of the Cross, at the Church of God’s Mercy in Warsaw which brought together over fifty artists and photographers together with actors, musicians, art theorists, and filmmakers.
Alfred D. Thomas: an Anglican, from Uttar Pradesh in India, who depicted Christ’s life and ministry. His Christ had the ideal male body of classical Indian sculptures, with broad shoulders and narrow waist. An Indian art critic wrote that, “Thomas’s pictures of the Christ as child, man and divine-man are unique in their true oriental colouring and sentiment.”
Hatigammana Uttarananda (b. 1954): a Buddhist monk who has been influenced by Catholic theologian Aloysius Pieris. Through his interest in liberation theology, Uttarananda is aware of the way in which Jesus broke down barriers between people and consistently depicts this aspect of Christ ministry in paintings based on the Gospel narratives.
Hanna Cheriyan Varghese: a Malaysian artist who began painting on biblical themes after being inspired by works she saw in the ACAA’s Image magazine. Varghese dyes batik cloth pictures and paints in acrylics. She has said that, “Art is the expressive cry of the soul. All of us have that urge in one form or another. Discover it; nurture it.”
Sadao Watanabe (1913 - 1996): created paintings of biblical narratives in the paste-resist stencil dying technique of Japanese Folk Art called katazome. Reflecting both his folk and faith roots Watanabe said of his paintings, “I would most like to see them hanging where people ordinarily gather, because Jesus brought the gospel for the people.”
Ruben Xulu (1942 - 1985): taught to carve by sculptor Bernard Gwensa and encouraged by Father Kinch, of the Roman Catholic Mission of the Good Shepherd, Hlabisa in South Africa, Xulu and Gwensa produced many sculptures for this church and other mission churches in the area. Xulu’s Christ-Crucified is informed by his own silent resignation to God’s will after he lost his hearing as a child.
Yasantha Boange (b. 1945): Sri Lankan wood carver who has been greatly inspired by religious themes and, for whom, wood carving has deepened his understanding of religion.
Vuminkosi Zulu (1948 – 1996): a Rorke’s Drift graphic artist, his work was brought to international attention when a German Lutheran priest based in Switzerland began to collect Zulu’s works and use them to illustrate his sermons. Zulu’s work was exhibited in Germany, Sweden and the USA, as well as within South Africa.
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Flying Burrito Brothers - Sin City.
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