What About Bob

New Superheros

Introducing 3 new Superheros from the mind of a 5 year old:
Rainbow Guy, Stretch Tongue, and Fireman.

Turtles Dominate Local Art Show

Eli now insists that his works of art be photographed.  Ninja Turtles continues to be a favorite, although, the Legion of Super Heros is running a close second.
 

Physical God - Why Art?

Being an artist and a creative arts pastor, I resonate with this blog entry by Winn Collier.

  Does God care about Elvis or the Mona Lisa?   

If we say that art lacks intrinsic importance, we are saying that there is no true value in breathtaking sunsets or the thousand varying scents of spring. A devaluation of art implies there is nothing divinely profound about the reality that our world possesses both zebras and clownfish, both bananas and pomegranates. 

There is something extravagant about God’s artisan heart. This extravagance does not allow us to settle for a faith that is true yet sterile. God invites our faith to be ravishingly alive and stunningly beautiful. So, art in any of its forms can never be merely a means to an end or only a conduit to spread a message. Good art tells a story about God, a God who smiles wide at Mona Lisa. 

Is Our Christian Art Relevant?

This is a very insightful article from Relevant Magazine. 

We have become irrelevant.

Many contemporary Christians tend to make one of three errors when dealing with art: One, we declare anything that doesn’t explicitly proselytize, anything that depicts brokenness without redemption to be depraved or unworthy of Christian notice. Or two, we decide that the secular world really does have better art, so we copy it, boldly and without apology or thought into our own creativity. Or three, we try so hard to be relevant that we adopt the attitude and worldview of the culture that surrounds us—instead of being the proverbial salt and light, we end up as dust with nothing to offer in the way of hope, because there is only a perfunctory difference between those of us who claim to follow Christ and those who don’t.

Read more HERE.

Baton Rouge Revisited

It was a beautiful week-end in Baton Rouge.    The azaleas were blooming and everything was green.  The temp was 68 and the sky was blue.  AND...no mosquitos.  A very unusual day in my home state. 

We lived in Baton Rouge for a while and have always paid visits to the state capitol.  Louisiana's capitol is the tallest capitol building in the country and an excellent example of American Art Deco architecture.  Alot of history has been associated with the capitol but the building itself is a work of art.

  Enter the capitol and you find this room, Memorial Hall.  Amazing art deco design.  The flags on the right in this picture represent the 10 flags that have flown over the Louisiana Territory.  Get this... The floor is made of Mt. Vesuvius lava from Italy. In the center of Memorial Hall is a 3,290 pound bronze relief map of Louisiana. The map lists each of the 64 parishes (counties) in the state around its border and depicts symbols of Louisiana’s major industries and natural products.

Take a look at the east side which leads to the Senate Chambers. This mural was painted by Jules Guerin of France and is referred to as the "Goddess of Knowledge and Time." The central figure holds a zodiac in one hand and an hourglass in the other. Harvest scenes make up the background.

More on the capitol and some political history later!

Eli's Coming

At re:create, Day 4 was awesome!  We got to hear from Cyndy Mooring who is mom to recording artist Leeland.  Cyndy talked to us about parenting, encouraging and raising gifted artists.  Cyndy and family shared a story of God's faithfulness that just moved us all.  Leeland and his brother Jack shared that his parents didn’t shield them from the hard times.  "You can never know how mighty God is until you know how mighty a problem is that he needs to overcome."  Another thing that was said was..  "you can’t take your house to heaven, you can’t take your luggage to heaven, you can’t take your stuff to heaven, but you can take your children."  They talked about the responsibility we have to pass on what God has done in our lives to our children and so begins the legacy.

I see a budding artist in my 4 year old son, Eli.  He absolutely loves to draw.  My son can occupy himself for hours drawing, coloring and painting.  At the risk of being the "proud parent", here are a couple of his masterpieces...
I hope that Brandi and I can "shave the learning curve off" our own child as we influence him to use his art.