A Trip to the Chrysler


I went to the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk in response to an assignment for my art history course I am taking this semester and really had a great time, more fun than I have had in an art gallery in the past. I have recently become very interested in art since taking this course and since my last visit to Minneapolis, where fascinating and experimental art abounds, and I have found that my opinions of art and of the philosophy behind are beginning to change drastically.

The Chrysler is not a huge gallery, but it does have the advantage that it has a wide variety of samples from many times throughout the timeline of Western art history. As I walked the halls, I was able to see the evolution of artistic expression through time, from the religious sculptures of classical Rome, to the colorful oil paintings and woodcuts of the Renaissance, to vibrant splotches and lines of the modern expressionism and postmodern assemblage. In the past I really didn't realize that philosophy had a lot to do with art, but upon closer study it really has a lot to do with thought and ideology, making art that much more meaningful. For example, Andy Warhol didn't paint soup cans just because he considered it art, but he did also because "cultured" artists thought that it was too ordinary to be called art. In the postmodern world of Warhol, where art can be anything, a soup can, a Brillo pad, or a pink portrait of Marilyn Monroe could be art. Interestingly enough, many philosophical and worldview movements begin in the art world and move to popular culture. Maybe art effects us more than we originally thought.

Another thing that has been effecting my view of art is looking beyond and and before the work of art. When someone looks beyond the painting, he doesn't just look at what the art looks like, but looks for how colors are meant to communicate feeling, how shapes communicate emotion, and how placement puts emphasis on different things. When someone looks before the painting, she is making a point to realize that this piece of art began in mind of the artist, and that artist spent lots of intimate time with that work, trying to effectively communicate what he or she was trying to get across. When we realize that art is in a way an extension of the artist, it takes on a very different importance and a more personal element.

I really believe that art really does have a profound influence on our culture and really can challenge and test our views of the world as well, and if we are willing to spend time experiencing art, we really have the potential to stretch and test our own thinking.

Experiential Discipleship as we Encounter God in the City

Many times we equate discipleship and spiritual growth with the study of books and being involved in deep thought over abstract concepts. But in many ways, growing closer to Christ involves just living our lives and being open interpreting the different things that occur in everyday life. Wherever we are, we are constantly being molded and changed as we experience different things. However, when we commit ourselves to go to places that are in desperate need of the hope of Christ, not only are others changed, we are changed as well.

This is one of the prominent themes of the book I just finished, Encounter God in the City by Randy White. White is a prominent staff member of Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, as well as a committed community activist in Fresno, California. After intentionally living in and visting needy commuinties all over the world, White has gained a deep and clear vision of God's love and passion for the people of urban areas. As White retells his many experiences of living in urban communities, he demonstates the how God has broken, molded, and shaped his view of those living in the city. As a result, he was not changed in respect to discipleship, but was also able to be used as an instrument of God's grace.

Throughout the book White talks about the idea of experiential discipleship. In other words, the idea that God changes and conforms us into the image of Christ not only through study of scripture, but also through our everyday experiences. By living in places outside our comfort zones and in places that challenge the way we think and the way we experience "normal" life to be, that is when God truly begins to change us. It is when we go to places with no shred of hope when we see the hope of Christ begin to emerge. It is when we got uncertain places when we realize that the Gospel is the only thing we can be certain of.

This really made me think about my own life and what that means for me as I approach graduation and the thought of moving into a very dark and uncertain part of my life. Do I want to settle, go to a place that is comfortable, and live in security, or live a life that is hard and uncertain, in a place frought with hardship and pain, a place where God is already working and where He needs workers to go. I truly believe that if I am willing to respond to God's guidance and go to places of darkness, I will not only be able to be an instrument of God, but that I will be shaped and formed like I never thought I could be.

Creativity versus Competition

I really enjoy playing and making music and freedom and the joy that it has the potential to give me, but I have been noticing a trend recently in the way that I think recently. Frequently I have been finding myself comparing own skills and creativity to the other musicians that I play with and that are around me. I either find myself trying judge their skill level as compared to mine, or I become discouraged because of a person's obvious skill and creativity that seems far superior to mine. At first I saw nothing wrong with this, until later I realized not only was I discouraging my own creativity, but more importantly I was unfairly judging people and getting discouraged by other people's gifts.

Obviously, this is not how I want to live my life, not only musically, but also with my everyday life in general. Creativity should not be something that is envied, but rather enjoyed, and people should not be judged by their skill level, but by what is really in their hearts. It is sometimes hard for me to realize that when it comes to art, everyone is coming from a different background and everyone is going to have a unique way of interpreting the world around them, whether it is through writing, music, visual art, dance, or any other way that their creativity may manifest itself. When will I finally begin to realize this and stop just trying to compare other people to some arbitrary standard, and what will happen when this idea starts being applied to other areas of my life?