When I was young our family lived in Europe for a couple of years. My mom was an art-lover, and she dragged us through seemingly every art museum on the continent. At the time, I arrived at the conclusion that the thing that made great art great was primarily its size.
One day, in Amsterdam I had a chance to eavesdrop on an English-speaking tour guide while she described why Rembrandt's The Night Watch is such a great masterpiece. Now this painting is enormous, so I had already figured out it must be a masterpiece. But what that tour guide showed me was that it was all about the genius revealed in the way it was painted. That revelation started the process of opening my eyes to art.
Fast forward to the year 2000. In Chicago, I stood before Jules Breton's Song of the Lark and had an epiphany. I understood there for the first time that, as important as the artist's creative input is, the truly critical factor in making great art great is the degree to which it reveals truth. And to the extent that art portrays truth, it bears witness to Him who said "I am the Truth..." I came to believe that, among many things that make great art valuable, the single most important fact is that God has inspired artists throughout the ages with His Truth, and has given them the ability to express some of it visually. So we respond to creativity and genius, yes, but what really moves our souls is the whisper of the voice of God speaking through artists and their art, singing that quiet little love song he has sprinkled throughout all of creation so we won't forget about Him.
It seems to me that so many people go through art museums without much of an idea why it's all supposed to be so great, so I wanted other people to be able to experience what I had been shown - sort of like that tour guide in Amsterdam had done for me.
Artcoins are one way I'm trying to do that, on a small scale, personal level, one geocache at a time.
If these little personalized swag "coins" help you understand the power of great art, that's wonderful. Be my guest to keep the "coin," or trade it for swag in another cache, to leave it for another geocacher to find.
If they aren't for you, that's fine too. Not everyone responds to God in the same way, and I'm not trying to propagandize anyone... just maybe inspire some who may find it meaningful.
One day, in Amsterdam I had a chance to eavesdrop on an English-speaking tour guide while she described why Rembrandt's The Night Watch is such a great masterpiece. Now this painting is enormous, so I had already figured out it must be a masterpiece. But what that tour guide showed me was that it was all about the genius revealed in the way it was painted. That revelation started the process of opening my eyes to art.
Fast forward to the year 2000. In Chicago, I stood before Jules Breton's Song of the Lark and had an epiphany. I understood there for the first time that, as important as the artist's creative input is, the truly critical factor in making great art great is the degree to which it reveals truth. And to the extent that art portrays truth, it bears witness to Him who said "I am the Truth..." I came to believe that, among many things that make great art valuable, the single most important fact is that God has inspired artists throughout the ages with His Truth, and has given them the ability to express some of it visually. So we respond to creativity and genius, yes, but what really moves our souls is the whisper of the voice of God speaking through artists and their art, singing that quiet little love song he has sprinkled throughout all of creation so we won't forget about Him.
It seems to me that so many people go through art museums without much of an idea why it's all supposed to be so great, so I wanted other people to be able to experience what I had been shown - sort of like that tour guide in Amsterdam had done for me.
Artcoins are one way I'm trying to do that, on a small scale, personal level, one geocache at a time.
If these little personalized swag "coins" help you understand the power of great art, that's wonderful. Be my guest to keep the "coin," or trade it for swag in another cache, to leave it for another geocacher to find.
If they aren't for you, that's fine too. Not everyone responds to God in the same way, and I'm not trying to propagandize anyone... just maybe inspire some who may find it meaningful.