Art Inspired by Genetic Variability The diversity is incomprehensible! When we look at the natural world–air, land, and sea–there appears to be limitless variations of shape, form, color, and texture. As an artist and a Christian, I believe the vast array of creativity in the natural world is best explained […]
A Tribute to James and the Giant Peach I can still picture Mrs. Leach standing at the front of the classroom reading James and the Giant Peach to my 4th grade class. The adventure of an orphaned boy and his bug friends aboard the miraculous peach was the most thrilling […]
Helping Children Bridge the Fact/Value Split This painting is part of the beautiful collection of Dutch golden-age paintings at the Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky. Not only is it lovely, it’s allegorical. Allegorical paintings are my favorite pieces in any museum. They do something daring! They bridge the chasm […]
I’ve been drawing peaches lately and pondering universals. Long ago, the Greek philosopher, Plato, set forth his idea of the ‘forms’. He hypothesized each thing in our physical world had an abstract essence or quiddity (the what-ness of a thing). Using the triangle, he said that the essence of triangularity […]
Christianity has inspired artists the world over with its transcendent truths: Realities that render words inadequate. One such reality concerns the baby born in Bethlehem roughly two thousand years ago. During the Christmas season, we sing of his birth heralded by angels on a silent and holy night. Who was […]
The late philosopher and theologian, Francis Schaeffer used the metaphor of a two-story house to describe the way we think about truth. You can read more about that here. We’ve been taught to split our concept of truth into two parts: facts and values. The lower-story of the house represents […]
In George Ferguson’s informative book, “Signs and Symbols in Christian Art” he lists the butterfly as a symbol of resurrection. He explains, “The butterfly is sometimes seen in paintings of the Virgin and Child, and is usually in the Child’s hand. It is a symbol of the Resurrection of […]
Looking through some art books recently, I was struck by how many paintings had ladders pointing toward the sky. From the very early depiction of Jacob’s ladder from the 4th century Catacomb of the Via Latina. To this painting from the french school, c. 1490, interpreting the same story- Art from […]
One of the things we love about the Narnia series is the magical wardrobe. Throughout the stories, Lewis is asking us to consider that reality includes more than what we see in our daily lives. The conversation the Pevensie children have with the Professor is revealing. Their younger sister, […]