The High, Low, Buffalo for this month’s newsletter is an alternative set of thoughts about God and Art. It is our tendency to assume that because everything is made by God that Art is too. That Art must be beautiful to be Art. But, in truth God has made us to be makers, therefore He has made us to be free with our aesthetic voice. In other words, God does not control what, how or even why we make Art. He has just made us to be makers!
We must Make because God Made us like Him!
This idea is hard for some of us to accept because much of Art being made in the 21st century that is in museums, galleries and collections is about the lost and brokenness we find in the world today. It can be crude, kind of nasty, obscene and in some of our minds, blasphemous. Due to the pain which surrounds us politically, socially, relationally, financially, ad nauseam, it is important that we use our visual voice to make, collect, show and visit Art that reflects our thoughts about these things as well. Joy is certainly a part of our being. Sorrow and lament, anxiety and hurt must not be minimized or overlooked in our cultural expressions just because it is easier to look at the good things of our lives. For it is that which is troublesome that often causes us to grow.
Think about these things
What about this verse from the Bible saying this about our thought life: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy—dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8 (The Christian Standard Version of the Bible)
Simply because we are urged to think on the things stated above in the Bible verse does not mean we must look away from our pain or the sufferings of others. The lament of today is real. And reality should be always be our focus.
In fact, the first in the list of the encouragements to think about in Philippians is to think on TRUE “whatevers”. Look at the photo above. When I was in Israel we waded into the Sea of Galilee or Tiberias Lake. It was so ROCKY! Our lives are rocky: sometimes boulders impede our paths and sometimes we can barely walk over the large stones of our existence.
Often as we see Art in a gallery that is ugly we question its artness, its worthiness to be purchased, exhibited and shared. “How can THIS be Art?” we snidely, arrogantly or in a truly perplexed way declare.
We Must Use The Materials God Has Created To Make Anything. We Only Refashion Things.
Even the Most Important Art is Merely Manufactured
Looking at the history of Art from the beginning until now gives us a context for why we began to make things and what God has to do with it. If we consider cave paintings or fertility objects from say 14,000 BC to be Art then man made things to communicate a narrative. Yes, today we do the same things for the same reason!
However, our narrative has become as complex as our lives for we no longer live merely to survive, but to be entertained, enthralled or transformed. Our aesthetic thrust forward is motivated by much more than food, shelter and clean water. Now, we must speak, and narrate and connect!
This idea leads us to the Low or challenge for this month: we do NOT really create. We recalibrate or combine. We recycle and throw things about. Yes, our skills over the years have become very sophisticated as you see above with Auguste Renoir and Thomas Kincaid’s paintings. But, Art must go BEYOND replication or copy of reality to be Art that is collected, exhibited and visited by people of the 21st century. Art is about connecting us one to another. Art is about how the artist with the collector and the visitor fasten together with the natural and the supernatural.
Friend, God is not the Artist! We are! However, we are not originators. We do not want to bring Him down to be like us. We always want to elevate Him beyond what we do. When we make things that connect us expressing ideas in which God wants us to truly abide, then we focus on things that are: sometimes honorable, sometimes just, sometimes lovely, sometimes commendable, sometimes morally excellent, but most certainly always truthful and assuredly worthy of our praise toward God our loving Father and Creator of all things.
When we make things that connect us expressing ideas in which God wants us to truly abide, then we focus on things that are…
Ugly Art is the focus of our buffalo
Let’s look at the Ugly Art Co. of Memphis TN
Yes! Anderson Goin was my student and he is my Art-son, (and his mom is my best friend), but none of these facts negates the fact that he knows what he is talking about. Pretty is subjective. Beauty is relative, i.e. “up to the beholder.” But, ART is always honest, most especially when it is ugly. Art does not have to be beautiful or comprehendible to be Art. In fact, it often is not.
I know you have heard me say it many times but it bears saying again: Art is meant to be shared, even if it is ugly or seemingly unbearable.
For more from Anderson, go Here at the Like Really Creative Show on Youtube. Thanks, Zack Orsborn for this fascinating talk about Art and Ugly with Anderson.
Next newsletter will address more about skill, beauty and copying nature. Maybe I will tell the story about how art-frustration led one man to become a dictator who nearly destroyed the world and an entire people-group. Yes, his name was Adolf.
The madness of demand can lead us all to murder.
Mind over things that matter 
4 responses to “Ugly Art Via the Philippians 4:8 Lens”
This was a perfect read for my Sunday. I think the best series that I ever painted was titled “Inconceivable”. It was not pretty, as the subject was abused women. It needed a large light shown on the issue. It is the only “ugly” work I have painted. It was a difficult endeavor.
I’m a big Renoir fan. His work spoke to me. His work with shadows was stunning. I found his paintings full off light and life. Kincaid feels like a cheap imitation when juxtaposed to Renoir.
You quoted one of my very favorite verses. And helped me see it with fresh eyes. Thank you!🫶
Thanks Sister-Friend! Your comment makes me feel so loved. Yes, your work is so devastating but artful. I hope to put a link to the work here so my followers can see.
I enjoyed listening to your former student, Anderson Goin, talk about his development as an artist and his creative process. My favorite part of the interview was when the interviewer said “I equate ugly with special,” and Anderson agreed. I had just finished reading an article on creative “walks” to take. One suggestion was to notice the ugly and broken things in the neighborhood and see them as a “heartfelt Valentine to imperfection.” (The Art of Noticing, Rob Walker, TAoN No. 188, Walker Special.)
Mary Beth, Your curiosity about and acceptance of ideas that aren’t in the mainstream is a big encouragement. Accepting the brokenness and lostness we experience in the world is a powerful way to connect with God’s grace. As followers of Jesus it is important to accept the things we cannot change. When a person makes Art about these things and when that same Art is collected, exhibited and visited, we all have an opportunity to unify around those things that can normally divide us! Thank you for being a good surface to work with! 💛 Jenna