DESCRIPTION:

This course is an introduction to Christian reflection on the visual arts. The approach will be to develop a biblical framework for creativity and for art, and against the background of classical and contemporary theories of aesthetics, explore the alternative positions Christians have taken. By slides and museum trips students will be exposed to significant examples of western art as a way of developing a critical appreciation and a Christian appropriation of this dimension of life--both as spirituality and as witness. A final section will explore examples of Christian art in this century both in the western and non-western world.

It is becoming increasingly obvious that a relevant witness to the gospel demands a cultural literacy. This is important for Christians to understand their own faith, and the cultural influences on it, but also for them to understand the world of others. Since the visual arts are informed by the dominant values of a culture, they provide essential components in developing the theory and practice of ministry.

The course will be divided into two sections. The first will focus on a biblical and theoretical perspective on the visual arts, with a view to developing a Christian aesthetic. The second will be a more practical exposure to the history of art via slides and visits to local museums. Class meetings will be held weekly for three-hour sessions.

Begbie, Jeremy. Voicing Creation's Praise: Toward a Theology of the Arts. Blackwell, 1991.

Rookmaaker, H. R. Modern Art and the Death of a Culture. InterVarsity Press, 1971.

Course reader on sale in bookstore.

Dillenberger, John. A Theology of Artistic Sensitivities. Crossroad, 1986 .

Dillenberger, Jane. Style and Content in Christian Art. Crossroad, 1988.

Dyrness, William. Rouault: A Vision of Suffering and Salvation. Eerdmans, 1971

Hofstadter, Albert and Richard Kuhns, eds. Philosophies of Art and Beauty: Selected readings in Aesthetics from Plato to Heidegger. University of Chicago, 1976.

Jackson, J. B. Landscapes: Selected Writings. (Ervin Zube, ed.), University of Massachusetts Press, 1970.

Rookmaaker, H. R. The Creative Gift: Essays on Art and the Christian Life. Crossways, 1981.

Seerveld, Calvin. Rainbows for the Fallen World. Tuppence, 1980.

Steiner, George. Real Presence. Faber, 1989.

Wolterstorff, Nicholas. Art in Action. Eerdmans, 1980.

The course grade will be dependent on three elements. First there will be a midterm after the first section on the biblical and theoretical perspectives on the visual arts. Second the student will be required to write a 5-7 page review of a book from the second section of readings or of an art exhibition, interacting with the book from the Christian perspective developed in the first part of the course. Finally a 12-15 page project on some aspect of visual art--a study of an artist, a trend or perhaps a period--from a Christian point of view. The exam and project will each be worth 40%; the review 20%.

M.Div. and M.A.T. elective; meets the M.A.C.L. in Integrative Studies requirement for an interdisciplinary course (IDPL).