Much of the art we see today causes me—and perhaps you—to question the inspiration and motives of the artist. Every artist has choices to make—do I want my art to uplift or tear down, to stimulate right thoughts and action, or to present erroneous ideas? What is my reason for creating? As an artist, I choose to uplift. Before Mary Baker Eddy went into a room of newspaper editors she paused, saying, “I was waiting for the Christ to go before me” (Julia Michael Johnston, Mary Baker Eddy: Her Mission and Triumph, p. 139). I’ve used this insight both in my art studio and in the classroom as an art teacher.
One time, I was working on a painting titled “Canyon Guardians.” Though my wife and I had visited Arizona’s awesome Grand Canyon many times, on this particular day as we walked along the rim, I was suddenly struck with a unique, fresh point of view and compositional concept for painting the canyon. I saw it clearly—to paint the gnarled ponderosa pine trees as a detailed silhouette in the foreground and use the colorful canyon vista as a simple supporting background. Since that God-inspired “angel thought,” my human footsteps in the studio have created a successful series of paintings using that theme.
I’ve often thought: What does it mean to create? An interesting definition for create is found in Cruden’s Complete Concordance: “To bring into being, usually understood as meaning to make out of nothing” (p. 116). Mrs. Eddy wrote, “Pictures are mentally formed before the artist can convey them to canvas” (Science and Health, p. 86). I’ve been asked many times, “What do you think as you look at a blank canvas?” Amazingly, my concept has initially already formed because God’s ideas are abundant, always available. As I continue applying the paint, I then trust and rely on God to further provide me with ideas for the colors and composition. I’ve found many times that God offers the facility, purpose, and plan to meet any painting challenge I may encounter. Mrs. Eddy kindly reminded us, “The artist is not in his painting. The picture is the artist’s thought objectified” (Science and Health, p. 310). This statement applies within every discipline of art.
