Labels

Do We Need Faith to See Religious Art?

THE GUARDIAN
The Series: Do we need faith to see religious art?
The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo
UNITED KINGDOM - Art is supposed to stand independently of the artist. Bad people produce good art – sometimes – while men of otherwise flawless character can perpetrate an 11-volume fantasy series. But can the aesthetics of art be detached from its spiritual purpose? Some of the answer seems to depend on the medium: at one end, music and sculpture appear to have a force that quite transcends words. What is lost from religious art when we lose religious belief? How much can we appreciate a work of art when we don't share the maker's religious purpose? [link]
Labels:

Comments

Sophia Beboick said…
"Even the most iconic of religious artworks can have profound meanings for the nonbeliever."

http://alphaomegaarts.blogspot.com/2011/09/religious-art-is-about-being-human.html
Wed Sep 07, 11:22:00 AM EDT
Catherine Pepinster said…
"Exhibitions of Christian art are now anthropological expeditions, as much as, say, a show featuring the pottery of the Ashanti tribe would be."

http://alphaomegaarts.blogspot.com/2011/09/transcendental-artistry-can-unite-even.html
Wed Sep 07, 11:23:00 AM EDT
Peter Thompson said…
Yes, you do need faith to understand religious art, but that faith does not have to be religious. It can also be in the ability of human beings to transcend themselves and to overcome their limitations. As Kierkegaard maintained: "If I could wish for something it would be neither wealth nor power, but the passion of possibility."
Sat Sep 10, 02:24:00 PM EDT
Ernest Britton said…
One does in deed have to hold religious faith to witness the intended power of a work of religious art. Any non-believer can "see" something human and wonderful, but it takes the lens of faith to "see" religious art as it was intended. It is the same whether the work is Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic or Christian or Jew. Recently Jed Pearl wrote in The New York Times, "While there is much about 'The Buddhist Heritage of Pakistan: Art of Gandhara' that will feel alien to contemporary museumgoers, there is no reason to reject our own, strong impressions." He is right, any non-buddhist can see the artistic wonder of these masterworks but it takes a Buddhist to see what is intended as works of religious art.
Sun Sep 11, 08:58:00 PM EDT
Post a Comment