The Good, the Bad and... the Indifferent.

"Finally, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, then think about these things". Philippians 4:9












Wonderfully made

I had quite an interesting experience whilst preparing for this entry.
I had mailed another photographer for permission to use one of his images on the blog, and he had responded warmly, granting that permission, and replying that he'd found the blog to be 'very sensual'. His words both cheered and provoked me - whilst I understood, I think, what he means, I also realized how such a conclusion is a two edged sword -
how many people back away, particularly Christians, from a page like this, purely because it can be surmised to be something 'sensual' and little more?

The first question that came to my mind was 'is that all that is here', or, to put it in a wider context, is that something which really defines my own work as a Christian and an artist? It's a crucial question, because if all one does can be defined as only sensual (and not include at least a reaching for the sensuous), then that's highly worrying.

Sensuality is truly restrictive in its nature and it aims. It orbits a single, sole occupation with the gratification of the senses purely for the sake of it, and is lewd, unchaste, worldly (in an entirely unspiritual fashion), selfishly indulgent, gross, and essentially brutish. It is exactly the type of deformity Paul speaks about when he commands us to kill earthward inclinations of passion, fornication and impurity - desires which amount to idolatry (Colossians 3:5).
Perhaps there are some who would deem any attempt to bring faith and art together in the fashion I am seeking here, especially because that attempt revolves around the glory of the human form, as nothing more than a selling out to such impurity, and therefore no good can come of it, but I do not think that is the true end point of what's involved here.

What I think my photographer friend meant in his comment is that there is much which is 'sensuous' about my blog and my artistic aims, and that would certainly be true.
Employing an aesthetic and creative approach to Christian art should mean that more tasteful and, hopefully, enriching qualities 'leach' into the immediate sensuality of work portraying the nude. Yes, there is some sensual response, but there is no reason why the qualities used to construct an image cannot then lead to the viewer 'seeing' far more in the light, form, tone and texture which dances there, whispering, perhaps, of the grace both in the form and behind it.
The use of art in this fashion has long been shown to open the esthetic -bathing our often dark world with the joy and richness of chaste charm, delicate moments which raise us to look beyond just seeing the immediate to yearn for a deeper harmony.

Of course, there's no guarantee that such a gift will infuse an image, and that is no doubt why many would prefer to keep away from this subject, but in spite of our corruption, we have not totally forgotten the call to a splendor that is earthy and heavenly at the same moment, which allows us to, if all but briefly, glimpse something of the garden once again. That brief 'catching' of such a fragrance certainly makes the engagement in such work significant.

Now comes the hard part.
Does my work fit in that category?
Well, I suppose the manner in which it is received is perhaps one of the best gauges I have of how others respond. 'Sensual' is not a word that comes up that often in the comments I receive. Many of the 'labels' that do arise seem to fit the 'sensuous' category quite well, so that's certainly encouraging.
I can say that my entire introduction and ensuing engagement with the genre has proved to be something something unexpected, startling and, in some respects, miraculous, so that also leads me to believe there is more going on here then just the sensual.

Nudity is certainly something we find used everyday to yank us into the immediate and the demeaning, but it does not have to be used in that fashion.
I hope that something of what I say, or write, or photograph, will help to show that clear distinction, and allow some to truly reflect on what is truly good, valuable and pure.

Splendor.

"It was bodily, sensuous human beings whom He created to be His image, and His first commandment was "Be fruitful, and multiply"...
They (were) His image in their whole particular bodily existence...
The 'redemption of the body' begins here and now, in the liberation of the bodily nature
which has been suppressed out of fear,
for the body truly belongs to the Lord and the Lord to the body -
the work of the Spirit through Christ is God pervades His creation".

Jurgen Moltmann : God in Creation.



Freedom (as depicted in a public statue).

Here's your starter for ten (as they say on the British program, University Challenge),
what's wrong with this picture?


Well, if you followed a principally Platonic notion of liberating the soul from the body, or a medieval (Aristotelian) approach that the body is formed (subservient) to the soul, or a modernal perspective which viewed the mind or will (now more in vogue than using soul) as the key instrument of the body, then you would probably approve of this rendition of this form... manly, yet modest;
an affirmation, perhaps, that God's key work cannot be viewed primarily as to do with the body, but a truly 'divine' propensity to look above and beyond such a confinement to something more 'pure', more ethereal - a higher glory.

It all sounds so noble - the declaring of some great, higher good, but in reality, just as when we view the original of this statue, it all comes crashing down....



The original work of Michelangelo had a very different 'glory':
Take a good, long look at this masterpiece, and you'll begin to understand why the 'piety' in the above version is such a mistake. I have been privileged enough to view a copy of his Renaissance masterpiece, on permanent display in London's Victoria and Albert museum, and it is simply breathtaking. The artist here is clearly seeking to make us recognize something which our times, like those blighted 'ladders to enlightenment' mentioned above, totally fail to see or understand. The central point of creation is indeed what God fashioned on that sixth day, not because of the spatial location of our planet, but because here, from the clay, from amongst the realm of flesh, God formed a creature which, in its bodily form, truly reveals and expresses something concerning His nature and His glory - that is the wonder of what we are. Like so much of the world's misguided philosophy, Christianity has so often in its history become so woefully benighted because it has neglected or miserably 're-interpreted' this astounding truth, and yet, there, in the core of the story of our creation and our redemption, this great gem glows undinted by such dross. It is when we begin to grasp the weight of this faith, as touched upon in my opening quote or so richly expressed in Michelangelo's art, that we find ourselves facing an uncomfortable, perhaps painful, yet finally marvelous transition.

We do not inhabit a realm that was made to merely fall and be judged - a mistake to be done away with... no, no! God inhabited the creation Himself - He was refreshed by His handiwork, and as He communed with Man, He sanctified such as Holy... a true reflection of His nature and goodness. That is why a full redemption is coming, and that is why we should, as Christians, be shocked and appalled at theology and art which professes a 'form' of godliness alien and foreign to the faith which focuses upon a naked child, a stripped, crucified man and a bodily risen Christ. If the physical, in this fashion, is not ours, then we have nothing to say to our fallen, broken world, for Christ is the redeemer of this earth, this creation, and His life, His treasure, will indeed be expressed here, in that day of glorification, forever.

That, perhaps, more than anything else is why discovering the splendor of the human, the body, is so important, to turn away from distortions of the goal, to the true splendor, the true prize, made ours in Jesus Christ.

H o m e

"And on the seventh day, God rested from His labors, and hallowed the seventh day, for the hosts of the heavens and the earth were finished" Genesis 2:1-3.





Seasons Fall by M29

There's nothing like it...
After all the endeavor to get something substantial finished, it can be truly satisfying to just stand back and truly delight in the finished work, especially when it's something you know will bring pleasure and satisfaction for a very long time to come.
Some creations are far more significant. Building an environment for others, or yourself, must be an amazing achievement. I've often watched shows where this has been done and pondered just how splendid it must be, after years, even decades of planning, hard work and often downright frustration to bring such a grand design from dream to reality.

The opening chapter of Genesis describes God's majestic work of creation along similar lines.
After an initial work in which all the principal essentials are put in place, the last few days home in on furnishing our world with all of the marvels which surround us, culminating in a wondrous garden where the first Man and Woman, naked and unashamed, are placed to live amidst the excellence of a world rich and fruitful.

It truly is all a marvel, but in many respects, the most important 'work' or activity of all takes place at the end of the creation week, when God does something quite remarkable.
The heavens and the earth are finished. Humanity has been given a place to live well - there's plenty to be delighted about, but God's 'delight' is more than some distant appreciation.
God 'refreshes' Himself in His creation. He makes that final day special, because the completed work before Him truly reflects His nature and purpose - to reveal and share something of the depth and beauty of His character. God is delighted to 'inhabit' this moment, to make it truly special, and in so doing, He shows to His handiwork the true purpose of the created order - to eternally speak of His glorious nature.

Within the 'glory' of the goodness of that day, God had created a being as male and female which was to become the focus of that revelation. We had been formed to truly express His being, His likeness, to the rest of His handiwork, and our bodies are an astonishing expression of this. Made from the earth, they share a rich commonality with all natural life, but the body is also the means whereby we express the deep tones of the nature or personality given to us. It is in this totality that we should express the image of our Creator and Father in all of our life, in all that we do. Whilst sin and evil have marred this, God's inhabiting of His creation anticipates something amazing - the day, many thousands of years later described by John, when the dwelling of God is truly amongst men (Revelation 21).


It's when we apply this context or framework to our natural condition that the human form is given its true worth.
In our fallen world, this is often glimpsed in art or moments of natural beauty which can literally take our breath away in a similar manner to the natural beauty of creation itself.
The danger, so often in this context, is bad theology, which uses the reality of the fall to essentially mask this inherent goodness regarding the natural, marking the material in general as evil and ungodly, when the entire reason for creation contends fundamentally against this.

When Christianity speaks of our redemption from death to life, it is not referring to some kind of 'half-life' continuation as a 'soul' or 'spirit' in an ethereal estate 'way beyond the blue' - it's talking about a bodily existence on a physical world without pain, disease, death or suffering, forever.

The Apostle Paul speaks of how our current earthly 'tents' are but a pale reflection of the glorious 'mansions' - the new bodies - we will posses on first day when God's delight in Genesis becomes the common estate of all creation by the redemptive work of Christ.

So our attitude to the body, then, is part of something far more comprehensive.

In the light of this, do we look upon the naked form, and perhaps creation in general, as something rich and good, or do we only see the scars of a fallen world - a prison we long to escape?
There is clearly a great deal to consider here.

The divine signature

Nativity by Dorian

Most working days, as I amble along the main road on my morning walk to work, I'm passed by a large white van with black windows so you cannot see in, with bold red letters stating "PROFESSIONAL CHILD MINDERS". I guess this, in the light of recent cases, is all meant to provide some measure of assurance for parents that use the service that their children will be 'safe', but the world is rarely that simple. Often, as has been shown in recent times, it is those very institutions which we assume are there to aid or protect us which become the vehicle for all manner of neglect, even abuse. The white van with it's bold letters tells me that each of us need to invest well in our lives, and that includes on our understanding of the matter of nudity.

Recently, a British television network found themselves at the sharp end of some unexpected flack when they aired a fourth program on art classes. The reason? Unlike the first three, this one took the bold step of showing the life model the class was working with - nude!
The scandal quickly made it into the media, as the creators of the show were charged of showing 'adult material' in the afternoon - time for the white van and black windows... this sort of thing shouldn't be allowed.

As a Christian, it made me wonder just how much of the truth of our faith is submitted to the same treatment. When was the last time that you heard a message, for example, on the garden of Eden which does not trip over Augustine's fallacy that only in the fall did the body truly become sexual and sensual, and therefore nudity itself became shameful?
It's a tragic approach, for it negates the actual faith and understanding of the first Christians, who affirmed the body in their understanding of God 'at home' amongst us in the coming of Jesus Christ. The incarnation, as many theologians have realized, tells us so much about God's delight and intent for the body within creation. The work he fashioned in a fellowship of love from the red earth of a new world is still the essential physical 'building block' of the marvelous renewed creation that is fast approaching, so if this is such a striking, wonderful work of God, why are we so troubled, so detached from it for most of our lives, apart from at birth and death?

Nakedness powerfully says so much about us, especially when the context is art, or actions which seek to convey some aspect of the significance of life, or faith, or either our majesty or frailty. As an artist, there are moments when I have been truly shaken or overwhelmed by the glory of the human form, not in any sexual manner, but by the way in which this truly "speaks" of the handiwork of God.

Study by Paul Kelley

Perhaps there is a similarity here to other things or fields we often mark as off limits - they're unsafe, so don't venture there - but what would our hope be if we didn't have a Maker and Redeemer who constantly crosses that line, who takes what is vile and unclean and turns such polluted creatures into people who truly know and share His profound love?

Next time we see a 'non-sexualised' nude, in a painting, a photo, or a TV program, like the life model, will our reaction be to slam down our eye-lids and evade the moment fast, or will we learn something about the one who makes such beauty?
It's worth thinking about.

What it's all about...

Once more, the seasons turn, and earth, so rich in summer greens and autumn hues, will know the disrobing chill of winter's stripping rite, and yet, on crisp mornings, such exposure conveys a sharp clarity, endearing and as vivid as the rush of spring, instructing us well, on the grace of nature so disrobed, echoing the coming amidst such a barren season, of God, clothed in no more than our frail flesh, to seize us, nurture us back, to Eden's endearing beauty... So, stark undinted nudity, calls in rich tones, of wholeness, soon to herald, upon all Creation's brow.

During the Renaissance, the world enjoyed a certain clarity regarding the value and place of nudity in art and culture. The values of the time informed a four-fold categorization of the matter, distinguishing between immoral nudity and affirming an enriching appreciation to the nude in art and culture.
The four categories were:

Nuditus Temporalis - Nakedness due to peril or poverty, or sometimes due to lifestyle.

Nuditus Virtualis - Nudity as a symbol, usually of innocence, echoed when practiced in actual nudity for certain purposes (repentance and confession).

Nuditus Criminalis - Nakedness in relation to non-virtuous sexual deeds through vanity.

Nuditus Naturalis - The normal (natural) state of humanity, as found in the communion of Eden, conducive in actions such as repentance, and earnestly desired in the forthcoming resurrection (glorification) of the body and the renewal of all creation.

It doesn't take much to work out where most of our modern world's engagement and activity commonly transpires, but this perspective reveals there are certainly other, and I would say more edifying ways in which we can engage with and enjoy the gift of our common state.

I'd like to use this blog to look afresh at nudity as a true wonder - a state which can so enthrall and edify us that we glimpse the art of the divine. So, that's the goal.
I'll seek to furnish entries as research allows with glints of that wonder, including my work as a fine art photographer but my hope is that others will contribute as well, so please engage with the material here, and let's learn more together.

Here's to some moments of value!