Kyla's Blog

A blog for Creative Christian

[akyladanielson]

Creative Manifesto

Worry is a strange thing. You can find yourself worried about something that isn’t even a thing yet. Just the possibility and idea of it scares you. This was me when I found out my brother and his wife were going to have a baby. They were not married that long and are pretty young and I know that they are still figuring out their life. My family was hoping they would wait to have life more settled before starting a family of their own. But God has His own timing that is beautiful in its own way. My parents became stressed through this news and that put a toll on all of us as they live in a different state and it is hard to be there for them in this situation or if they need help. But then she came to visit and I got to come home to this beautiful and happy baby that loves life and gives off so much love I know everything will be alright. We are so thankful we are blessed to have such a joyful soul join our crazy family.

This is my creative manifesto because I wanted to tell a story through these photos that I took of my niece. A photo can tell a person a lot of things from the person in it, the mood and setting of the photo, and the place that it is in. At first glance, you see a happy babysitting in a park, but there is so much more to it. The amount of pain and sadness that was brought on before this wonderful joy can be told in a story around it. I wanted to be creative through this art and the past year of my life and looking at these photos. I wish I could have seen these photos when I found out the news a year ago and the peace that they bring me. The interesting thing is they probably have no meaning to other people, but these show me that Ruth will be okay and puts a smile on my face and peace in my soul. This is what I think art should do, and that makes a person feel emotions and see a story as everyone has one. My point of view is that there is so much more behind the art and that can not only come through photography, but also songs, poems, painting, sculptures, storytelling, movies, dancing, running, and so much more. This creative Christian class has shown me how to look further into myself to create such stories and art.

This art also ties into my faith and spiritual side. I had to pray and trust in the Lord when that worry hit my family and I. But looking a year later into the situation I see a beautiful baby girl that is so happy and easy to love. I can trust God more because of this and see my faith laid out in these photos. God also expresses his beauty through Ruth and His creative side in every one of her personality traits and image. There is a plan that God has for everything and we will never know His intentions but they are always for the good and these photos make me feel that way. If I was seeing this art for the first time it would bring me joy, but also understanding in how can anything bad in the world not be made better by seeing the true happiness here.

[akyladanielson]

Week 15 Reading Response Art as a Calling and Loving the Art, Hating the Artist

After reading “Art as a 21st Century Calling” I saw how they talked about art through the 21st century and the calling they go through. It looks into how Christians view art and how they want to tell stories of all kinds and depict the many forms they come in. Christian artists can use the life of Jesus as a great example of how He had to deal with raw storytelling and the life that He lived was not glamorous by any means but is a story worth telling. He used parables and metaphors to tell stories and as an artist it is not the job to just retell these storie. But rather it is to tell stores arising in this culture, grand or not, and use imagination in a way that people want to see. Jesus also faced many people in His life that gave great criticism good and bad and artists too can follow in His footsteps in dealing with this. Being in the public eye can be difficult, but it is what God commanded of Him and that also means being a good steward of the earth. There is a lot that Chrisitan artists have to consider and being preparted will help them understand this calling they have and staying open and seeking the need for God is how to deal with all that comes from this world.

The art assignment video “Love the Art, Hate the Artist” talks about she loved an artwork by a certain artist but thne after learning about the terrible interaction how that made her feel about the art now. I think this is super familiar as if I know more about the person and it is a negative thing then it is hard to consider their art without that information in my head. This effects how you see art as you see the deeper meaning. I think this goes both ways to either see more in a positive or negative way. The video talked about how to see art and based on its own merit rather then with more explanation and it depends on the artist. If they think it will add value to know more about it then they should be able to say that but it can also be on the viewer if they need more to get something out of it. The art itself cannot always tell the whole story so givigin meaning is one way to do it, but it depends on many aspects. Communucaiton is a way to change the way art is viewed and it will not be forgotten when looking at other art and if a person does not want to know more then they can ignore the explanation to get their own deep meaning out of it as well. This video was something I agree with because when I read an artists story it shows me what they are trying to convey and I understand how this can be helpful.

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week Church respecting Art and Art deepens understanding.

I think the church does respect art and artists because they see how it can be used to bring the faith to a certain group of people. My church respects art because we always have art all over the building and it has been specifically made to where it belongs such as in the youth room it can relate to teens and children in the kid’s room. I think this is important as it helps it connect to the group and they also involve members in the making of the art so that people can really personally connect as they put effort into the art themselves. We have members of the church that are artists by profession and they have created many things for our church such as depicting the various “I AM” statements of Jesus and putting them at the front of the church. This shows that they not only respect art but support those that are doing it and express that in what they have around the church. I can see how some churches maybe have not to a certain degree but that is because they are trying to keep to traditions and fear the artists are going against that to some degree.

An artwork has deepened my understanding of something when it makes me feel emotions that I did not before. This can happen in the church when they have artwork at the same time as the sermon and that makes me see a deeper understanding of what the Bible said and through someone else’s eyes. I think this was because I am open to seeing something at a deeper level and when I feel closed off then I do not let the artwork give me this new understanding. I think everyone has this opportunity to let artwork deepen your understanding and that is when things change and the art does its work.

[akyladanielson]

Week 14 Discussion Post

This week I read “Let the Games Begin” by Stephaine Sabo where our teacher Tina Linville reflected on what it looks like to be an artist of faith in our time. This article looks at what it means for the world to all be together such as with the Olympics and how that can be used for Art. First, it talked about how kids just like to play with the box when they get a gift and play with the wrap it came in. This stuff is often used to create art and make something just as beautiful. I found it interesting as it shows how artists can use different elements and engage with the themes around them and that is important to be open to anything available to an artist to make something truly unique. Play can create opportunities for creativity and bring joy which will then bring color and life to our lives and artwork and that is what this article talks about.

Then after reading “Art as a Proper Job” it talks about what it means to be an artist and the job seen around it. It discusses how many artists are in the world today and how that can be compared to the Renaissance. Then it has to be considered how they would support themselves and the goals they should set for themselves. When working with commissions you get to make something on a deadline with a lot of difficulties as well but allows you to take your art seriously to make something others would enjoy. I think this is valuable to know as every artist is going to deal with this as this is what they want to do for their lives. It also discusses how wanting success and for people to like your art is a good thing as well, but to not get caught up in all of what the art world can do to you and never compare to others. This is a tough world and it is good for future artists to be prepared about it and looking through history to see what they have gone through to understand how to truly be successful and happy with what you are creating.

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week Art that was “bad” and has changed my mind about something

A time that I found a piece of artwork and considered it bad was when I was scrolling through Instagram and a friend had drawn something. I found it bad because there were no colors and it did not look fully done. It was not the best I had seen and I would not pay to have seen it if that was the case. I found it bad because I compared it to other artwork and I know that I have seen better so that is why, but I know I could not have done that myself so I still kind of admired it. It would have been better if they did not use just pencil and maybe added paint or something and it did not make me think of anything so there was no deeper meaning behind it. I feel that art has changed my mind about something because I saw it one way but then when I found something else in it that I did not initially see then it changed my mind about reality. It had me mind blown and made me think about something deeper than before. This was something that had to do with my faith and had me see God in a whole new light and that is how it changed my mind. It made me see something even more beautiful. I would not say art has changed any of my main beliefs or worldviews but it has made me appreciate life more and set me back in my steps and that is how I know they did a good job with the art.

[akyladanielson]

Week 13 Discussion Imagine Reading and Art is Beautiful

After reading Imagine on the Split and it talked about art and how that compares to the secular world. There is a way that artists are viewed and what they create and how as Christians can sometimes view what they are doing in a certain way. I found it interesting as this chapter looked at music and the people singing them and how there are many meanings behind what they are putting out and that is cool. “So often Christian artists feel that their role is to take on the enemy, whereas they would produce better and more accessible work if they dealt with the contradictions, waverings, and weaknesses within themselves” (Steve Turner, 72). I found this particularly interesting as it showed how you cannot separate work as a professional person and as a spiritual person. They go hand in hand and people try to drive a wedge between that. I liked how it talked about art having an opportunity to bring in clarity and details that could have been missed and can renew our minds into seeing the amazement and this chapter did a great job of showing how art can be used and contribute to the church in many ways.

The interview with Lynn Aldrich discussed what it was like for her to be a Christian artist and how she has incorporated her faith in the workplace. She said she found it to be a challenge but wanted to be able to work with all that is around her.  “I want to engage what’s out there—this is the time and place in which I live. So I don’t set out to have Christian content but I set out to be grounded in my worldview as a Christian.” I found this to be very insightful because she was not concentrating on only one view but seeking more out of the world to give that light to her art but making sure she stayed grounded on what she believed at the same time. This was great as it allowed God to be revealed to her through nature and this has helped her fulfill her life as an artist. She uses many materials and keeps what she does as real and even used the stuff people do not always consider just as Jesus hung out with everybody and I found that to be interesting. She ended by discussing using God’s talents and abilities as well as being a good steward so she adds to the world and that is a great view as an artist.

Finally, I watched the “Art Must be Beautiful” video that considered how many artists through history have considered being beautiful. Many philosophers talked about how it is up to the viewer or how it is made of its parts or even something that makes you think about it. This shows how art can attempt to show beauty to everyone but it is different for many cultures and people as they have perceptions of what this means. It has changed through time and the kinds of art that are being looked at. The video looked at all of the movements that have gone around this idea as well because it can be traditional one way but also a feminist movement another way that tried to get people to stop looking at a certain woman like that. There is a status quo around a certain beauty and it was cool how the video talked about how yes beautiful art sells but there have been many times where it stands out and can be seen as not beautiful to some. I think this is a hard topic to answer because of all the sides to it but it definitely shows how people are always looking for beauty in some way and that is what art is about.

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week Does Art Need to be Beautiful?

I do not think art needs to be beautiful necessarily. I think people are more attracted to the artwork that is beautiful because that is what makes them happy but there is something deep that comes out of something considered “ugly”. I find that ugly artwork though can represent a truth that people are searching for. I find myself liking artwork that is beautiful more because I have so much going on in my life that it is peaceful to get lost in the art that is unique and something I could never do. As a Christian, it inspired me to see beautiful art because it not only shows how great our God is but also how wonderful it is to see someone using their gifts to create something that represents that. But I do not find it necessary for art to be beautiful also because everyone is different and what someone finds pretty can be ugly to someone else so it is really up to the person. It can have a deep meaning and that is beautiful in its own way as well. An artwork that I considered to be good is when my friend did a portrait of herself. I thought this was good not only because it totally looked like the person, but it showed how much work it took for them to put into it. It could not have been as good if they quickly made it and had to measure out everything so that it did its purpose and that is exactly what happened and made it good to me.

[akyladanielson]

In Class Discussion Week 12

In class, we got our homework back in the form of printed-out photos, buttons, and baseball cards with the sticky notes we made in class. This was cool to see our artwork changed and placed into a different form. We also finished the book Emerge this week so it was cool to discuss the practicality that it had and the different effects it had on people. Creativity is a skill and takes practice and Athletes are an example of that as you have to work at what you love and want to be good at. Sampling is an example of the creative process as you spend time working and working and that is when you make mistakes and figure out the path that you want to take. Every day that you do something then the better you get and this is exactly what happens with art. We also discussed the aspects of the book reading this week and the chapter on being useful. I think it’s hard to think about how we can be “useless” in the world and that can be a hard thing to swallow is if we aren’t being useful then we are useless. God wants us to use our gifts and abilities to improve the world and the cultural mandate where we all play our role in the world. But this does not mean we all need to be successful and making money but rather we are glorifying God with what He gave us. There is also no way to measure success so what does that mean for each and every one of us. It can mean pursuing God in all that we do and every day but doing things that only help us seeking our Lord. We got to ask questions and everybody as Christians got to answer from their perspective and that was cool as we searched how we find joy in God and what makes us happy. This is different for everyone and people get happy doing different things so knowing that we are not an accident and were created for purpose is very meaningful to us. The question of the week is how can art be made to the glory of God and what that looks like. We talked about how it does not need to be making money but rather needs to be good in His eyes and be using your abilities and the work we do is to please the Lord and that’s it and I think that is important to know as we graduate from college. There were a lot of great points and questions that were brought up in class and all stem from how we can be our best selves to glorify God and create purpose in all that we do.

[akyladanielson]

Reading Response Week 12

Emerge first talked about truth and that means listening to what you are telling yourself and evaluating that inner dialogue within. The book said, “Transformation occurs by replacing the lies we tell ourselves with the truth. Be believing we are loved by God, by believing we have value and worth, by believing we are good at something, our behavior will change for the better. This is the renewing of the mind.” (Emerge,67). This teaches me that we need to stop listening to the lies that the world tells us and I think this has an impact on creativity because what we are seeing can be false and we can not be truly transformed by God until we get rid of those lies.

Then the book talks about the usefulness and how the media or technology has consumed a bunch of our time. God is always pursuing us and we need to see our role in His story and that can help us prioritize what is important to us and in our lives. We want to be useful in this world and that means that our work is changing the lives of people. We want to embrace our values and purposes in society and strive for the best to follow God’s mandate in the world and this chapter expresses all of that.

Emerge finishes with the final habits for being creative and how this book came to be. This was a final encouragement to work at being better in mastering your talents and purposes and find where Christ plays a role in this. We as Christians are the image-bearers of our Lord and we want to open our hearts to receive this truth and work on bettering ourselves for this image to be the best we can be.

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week: How can art be made “to the glory of God”? What does that look like? What doesn’t it look like?

There are many ways that art can be made to glorify God and they focus on how it reflects what the Lord is about. This means that the art being made is using the best of your God-given talents and goes for the beliefs in the Bible that He has set before us. The art is not portraying evil or being used to worship the art and not the Lord and that is a hard line to draw. I think art has a good place in the Church and for Christians, as it can be used to reflect the God that we love and help bring people into following Him. We are made in the image of Christ and so we should express that in our art and all of His great attributes so that people know that you are a Christian  and see His great name through the art.

[akyladanielson]

Class Discussion Response

This week we talked about the 10 rules that we read and listened about during the week’s reading homework. I feel that a lot of people could relate to the list and also find themselves needing the same reminders like the ones placed in front. Some people were saying that they had to be alone to be productive and others were struggling with starting the creative process. Motivation is different for everyone and getting started the hardest part and I feel that personally because if I am not in the right environment or mindset then it will not happen as well. You want to trigger yourself to be in the zone and in the studio you are looking for inspiration. Simplicity was looked at in the Emerge book and I thought it was interesting because some people can take it to the extreme and some don’t but both have been found effective. The village section was very important because it is shown through your work and the people around you that are helping. These people can challenge you and support you and that has an effect on your art as it also shows engagement. I thought the class gave a great answer where we shared how others have helped be productive in the past and the village around you knows you the best to give great input. I also enjoyed listening to how everyone creates their own habitats for creative space. I think it is important to know how you function the best and the environment you require and that is different for everyone. They talked about having certain chaos compared to having things organized. Our group discussion was very helpful this week because I got to see how other people have experienced art in their churches and we talked about the use of creating art during the service. I think this can be very impactful but again hard to draw a line to where it is distracting and for the wrong reasons. We also looked into renewing of the mind and how God has been there for us to calm us down and when we look at the past we can feel that God worked through us there. Our minds can be overwhelming and busy and that is when we need God the most and when he strips us away that makes it even more difficult to see His love.

[akyladanielson]

Reading Response Week 11

Emerge this week talked about simplicity, village, and Habitat. The first part of the reading was about simplifying your life and what it means to get rid of the unimportant and urgent things in your life. This will allow for not only time in the creative process but also space where you allow it to come for you. The next part is the village which is the group of people around you that help you get to where you want to be. They are supportive and help you get to the success and goals you want out of the creative process. This way nobody is alone and encouragement in many ways is how great things happen in your life. Emerge also discussed a habitat which is the space and environment that you work in. The space you are in has a large impact on how creative you can be and how that will help you be successful. It does not need to be simple or elaborate, but rather has to fit your needs and allow you to do the work you are setting out to do. I find this important because the place that I am located in really helps the way that I work and I find myself needing it to be quiet and open. Then the document on the Immaculate Heart College Art Department rules was a simple piece that showed the priorities a person can have to be successful at teaching. I thought this was unique because it shows what are the most important things a person can find and place in their work to be successful and to achieve their goals and if people do this it can help them prioritize. I feel that it was very special to a person and can be used to calm a person down if they are feeling overwhelmed by all that is going on. The video then dug deeper into the list we viewed and the rules of an artist that can be used by many people in their own lives. I found it interesting that it discussed each rule and showed the deep meaning behind each one and how she had such purpose in placing these rules in their life. It is important to be self-disciplined and that can be used for anything in life but this video was cool in showing that to really enhance your creative process means to place rules and put importance in the simplicity of it.  

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week  What art should look like in the Church? How does God “renew” our minds?

I think that art can be used in a great way in the church and can serve many purposes. It can be used all around the church and I have seen some that actually have an artist painting an image throughout the service to express the lesson. I think this is very impactful as people can use the art to feel closer to God and understand the message that is being preached. I think there is a limit or line to how it can be used because it can be used to depict God in a wrong way and that is not how it should be used in the church. My church has stained glass windows that are beautiful and a cross at the front with various artworks beside it of other ways that God is seen such as the Lamb and Shepherd and I think this is what it should look like. God can “renew” our minds in different ways. I believe this word to mean that we are being redeemed and saved from what we were before and to renew our minds is how God speaks to us. He can give us clear sight on what is right and true in the world and when it comes to art and creative minds it is important to be renewed through Christ.

[akyladanielson]

Class Discussion Response

This week we are transitioning into the HOW section of this class. This will get philosophical in this space as we consider how we do church and how artists and Christians have struggled with this in the past. We discussed the video and how he talked about artists’ need to find the time and work for productive hours to get their work done. If they want to do well they need to make sure that is what they are focusing on.  Whatever your goals are or where you want to go being creative no matter what is helpful. There is a strategy in sampling and working on being creative and that is when you relax and truly create. This is also when you find what works for you and what does not. Nobody is going to achieve your goals for you and that is something hard to realize but putting into the work is how you get there and that very much applies to this theme of HOW that we are discussing. In our discussion group, we talked about the question of the week about the art you create versus the art you like. I liked how most of us agreed that we draw inspiration from others and what we look at even if we cannot necessarily do it ourselves. I found that I am either looking at art that I could never create or am looking at the possibility for me to do and I was not alone in this. I also found it interesting that we talked about how the Bible can create inspiration for our artwork. Most of us said that we don’t necessarily read a Bible verse and then immediately go create something, but rather when are feeling something spiritual is when that comes across in our art. I liked how one person said that when reading the Bible God calls her to go and write something on it and I didn’t think about how writing is a form of art and I found it awesome that she found great inspiration from that. This was overall a good discussion class and started looking into the how aspect of creating art.

[akyladanielson]

Reading Response Week 10

After reading Emerge this week on Ideas, Master, Messiness, and Habit I learned how to use the creative ideas that come to your mind. It is also important to not only have ideas but put a focus on the ways that you are using your creative talents. You gain experience through time and how you are practicing will show what you will get out of it. To be truly creative you need to develop your talents and work at what you love so you can be a master and artist in your field. The book also discussed how to learn from your failure and more past them as they are what shapes you and to even go as far as celebrating them. “If you see a single failure and as a total failure, you will never be able to develop your talents, finish your endeavors, and or grow in your career” (Emerge, 102). I think this is very important because if people see their creative works as failures then they will give up and not create anything more and that is a large waste of such talent. What the book talks about is creating good habits and spending time developing your creative side and I agree with this because if someone wants to be a successful artist then they need to put in the work and deal with the messiness to get there. Finally, the video looks at struggles artists are typically going through and good habits that should be created such as doing what you love and this was very helpful. I found it interesting because he discusses famous people and how they have used their habits to get to where they. It is valuable to get feedback and grow as well and that stood out to me because anyone can use that in their career or they will not make it very far.

[akyladanielson]

Question of the Week.  Art you make vs. View How Bible guides Art

How is the art I make different that the art I like is that I make things that I know that I can make. The art that I look at and engage with as a viewer is that I try to step outside of what I commonly see and look for something new. There is a difference between the art because of the lack of stuff that I make and what I want to engage with. But I also see how they can correlate because I want to also see what other people are making in stuff that is similar to mine. This can help give inspiration and helps encourage me to want to try new things with my own art while also finding new stuff for me to look and engage with.

Reading the Bible in my opinion has provided little guidance about looking at or making art but is not where my head usually goes when reading it. The Bible makes sure we see God’s creation as artwork and being made in His image and so that guides me to look at art in this eye. Not only what people make but also looking at ourselves in God’s eyes and knowing we are His temples, knowing this makes us see the world as something beautiful. I would not say that after reading the Bible does it tell me to go and make art or guide me in what I make, but being a Christian makes us look at art differently and seek the greatness of what we make.

[akyladanielson]

Class Discussion Response

We talked about the myths and stereotypes as an issue because they put people into boxes. You aren’t looking at how God made this world messy and unique and doing this works against God by being harmful. Discussed mental illness and how the videos showed they affect the creative process, and the artists that are not trying to be “tortured”. Everything in the world is a large part of the artwork and the way it looks can be drastically changed when adding all these views to it. There are shows out there right now that are expressing these issues of the world and people are having problems with them and I find that interesting because I do not watch them but see what they are talking about. I would have a hard time seeing shows based around suicide, rape, and young girls being exploited and issues involved around that.

The group discussion was very interesting as we had different opinions on the questions of the week and they brought up sides that I did not consider. Most of us considered the art world to be open to anyone and is in everything because everyone is an artist in their own way. But then the group discussed how the art world can actually be very elite and difficult to be a part of that is based around money. I can see how that is brought up as the artists you think of are part of galleries and there are critics and make a lot of money to be a part of it and that was interesting to me. We also discussed how when we know more about the person making the art can be a positive and negative thing. When it comes to Christian artists and Christian artwork I see the positive being that knowing their story or testimony and how it affected their art then that is a good thing to know about who did it. But when the art is controversial to our beliefs then knowing the artist almost ruins that artwork and focuses more on that than on the art by itself and that is what the group discussed.