While working through the jetlag of our return from an Israel production trip, I’ve had a chance to visit some of the 1700 artist exhibits that are being shown at over 190 different sites in the second annual Grand Rapids, ArtPrize event.

It’s turning out be a gathering place for our community and a way of looking together at the fun and trauma of life through the eyes of art.

Have been reminded that whether the artists attempt to depict the meaning or meaninglessness of life…

…and whether we realize it or not…

…in the likeness of our own Creator…

…we have all inherited a capacity and calling to create…

This years winner, selected by public vote, was a 28 foot pencil drawing called “Cavalry.”

Photo:Fellowship of the Rich

So far the lines have been too long for me to wait through.

Will try again over the weekend and see if I can get close enough to get a pic. (Lines still too long so I found a pic on Flickr)

The $250,000 first prize winner was a local artist who worked from a small photo to create what is being described by those who have seen it as an amazingly realistic life-size reproduction of 53 World War 1 era Cavalry Officers.

One of the things that has been so interesting to me is the variety of the exhibits.

From the beauty of a paper mache’ Giraffe…

…to the hauntingly life-like creation of a Tibetan monk in meditation…

to the realistic oil painting of a New York subway ride, the artists have brought such a range of moods and perspectives.

As usual there were a number of portraits that were appreciated by comparing a long look, and then a close-up, of the media and techniques of the artists.

Some used thumb tacks, ceramic tiles, rubic’s cube-like squares, or a variety of other materials to show the power of pattern and perspective.

I came away reminded of how much these art exhibits reflect the momentary snapshots, long term story, and life-changing wisdom of the Bible.

In the word pictures of our first parents contemplating a forbidden tree, to a young Joseph being thrown into a pit by his older brothers, to the lifeless body of a crucified rabbi being sealed in a borrowed grave, we see over and over how life looks in the moment, and then from a distance.

The wisdom of God, helps us realize that what we see as hopeless or meaningless… is just one brush stroke, tile, or shadow… in the hand of our Creator

PS The pictures here are small. Click on them to enlarge.

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