Spirituality

First, let be begin by saying, kudos to anyone who FULLY understands Matthew Barney's The Cremaster Cycle films. With my head slightly tilted and an eyebrow raised, I still do not fully understand what is going on. In Lynn Brunet’s article “Homage to Freemasonry or Indictment?: The Cremaster Cycle,” she discusses Freemasonry in The Cremaster Cycle. Before having read the article, I was unfamiliar with Freemasonry and really confused about Barney’s films. From what I understand about Freemasons, they are a worldwide, [not so] secret fraternity, who have ritualistic group meetings, ties to Mormonism, and successful members. Is Barney paying homage to his fraternity by including symbols and allegories in his films? Is there anything really wrong with that or is the fraternity actually a cult? Are they religious or spiritual?

I cannot think of an example of when art is not in some way expressive. Life and death are the common denominators of everyone. Each person has their journey through life and will eventually die. In my opinion, having faith in religion or a greater being answers many of the most difficult to answer questions: Where did I come from?; Why am I here?; Who created me?; and What will happen to me when I die? Religion is guide on how to live your life and it provides you with the answer to what will happen when you die. Religion can be tied to science- trying to prove or disprove a greater being; and it can be tied to identity, some people immediately identify and define themselves according to their religious beliefs. Stories are told through art- biblical or allegorical stories- to teach a moral lesson or the creation of someone or something. Religious/ moralizing themes in art will always be relevant. In Themes of Contemporary Art, it states that “the word spiritual [refers] to the common yearning to belong to something greater than the self, the desire to probe the source of life and the nature of death, and the acknowledgment of ineffable, intangible forces artwork in the universe.” So, does that mean that a person who is spiritual is someone who is longing to be religious? Does a person have to be religious to be spiritual? Must religion and spirituality go together?

I found Shirazeh Houshiary’s Turning Around the Centre to be interesting. “[She] studies the teaching of Rumi, ‘where the significance of ‘becoming,’ through transcendent exercises, dancing and whirling, leads to divine enlightenment.” Again, within this course, is mentioned the act of “becoming” (285). Does that suggest that religion and spirituality are constantly being acted upon?

Brunet, Lynn. "Hoamge to Freemasonry or Indictment? The Cremaster Cycle." Project Muse. 2009.

Robertson, Jean and Craig McDaniel. "Themes of Contemporary Art, Visual Art after 1980." New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2010. 272-309.

Spirituality in Folk Art: Minnie Evans

While reading Robertson and McDaniel’s view of the role of spirituality in art, my mind constantly wondered back to the role of spirituality and religion in folk art. Folk art began as a way to look at the native land’s culture and have a better understanding of it. Folk art stems from close knit communities, with a type of kinship that mirrors a family-like bond within that society. Religion and spirituality play a major role in these communities, as it would in a family dynamic, regardless of what the beliefs are. For these artists, their themes tend to center around their particular community and its beliefs and practices. It is these style of art (spiritual and religious) that “has addressed humanity’s most profound needs and life’s greatest mysteries; beliefs about death and an afterlife, the nature of the universe and humanity’s place in it, and the moral codes that guide private and public behavior” (McDaniel 278).

It is artists such as Minnie Evans who use their work to express their spiritual side. Her work, she says, is a result of visions that come to her. She says that “something told me to draw or die. It was shown to me what to do" (Antonart). She uses faces in many of her works, surrounded by abstract designs. The eyes are a representation of God’s divinity and his omniscience. Her work embodies her religious beliefs and shows the viewer a more abstract way of viewing typical religious art; meaning that there is not a definite aspect of her work that shows that this is a spiritual piece without knowing that it is. Being that she is a folk artist, her work shows the impact that her community and its beliefs, has had on her. It is this spiritual aspect that refers to the “common yearning to belong to something greater than the self, the desire to probe the source of life and the nature of death, and the acknowledgment of ineffable, intangible forces at work in the universe” (McDaniel 278). It is this yearning in her beliefs that drives Minnie Evans to show her devotion through her works. Spirituality and religion will continue to play a major role within art as long as there are people. People’s faith, regardless of what it is, will always be a strong force that guides them, and through art, they are allowed to showcase that faith.

"Minnie Evans - Biography." Anton Haardt Folk Art Gallery. Web. 28 Apr. 2010. http://www.antonart.com/bio-evan.htm.

"Minnie Evans." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 28 Apr. 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnie_Evans.

Robertson, Jean, and Craig McDaniel, eds. Themes of Contemporary Art: Visual Art after 1980. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2010. Print.

the theory of "I don't know" in religious art

Even though religion or spirituality are controversial subjects, I think whether someone is atheist or a devoted Christian they still find the subjects interesting. Possibly for the reasons that Robertson and McDaniel give, “One reason that artists are drawn to the themes of religion and spirituality even when they harbor doubt is that they are interested in morality and ethics” (Robertson, McDaniel, 287). However I believe that another reason is because most people are curious and don’t actually know the truth. There is no way to “know” and I am one of those people that do not claim a religion at all. I think because of this I was able to closely relate to Robert Gober’s work. Gober is described as someone who “does not participate in the religion of his upbringing (Catholicism), attempted to come to terms with the absence of religion in his life” (Robertson, McDaniel, 287). Although I think his work is bizarre in some ways, it is also intriguing. The curator’s analysis is what sparked my attention and made me associate myself with his own beliefs and work. Dean Sobel says, “this dual-level installation also explores the dynamic between the conscious world (what is immediately apparent) and the subconscious (those things lurking beneath the surface)” (Robertson, McDaniel, 287). It is as if even non-believers, like myself, wonder if something is actually there “beneath the surface”, however it is unknown and it can never be fully concrete.

This view of Robert Gober’s and my own view made me think back to Bill Maher’s “Religulous” video. However the video is harsh, it is brilliant. He puts forth the idea and religion of “I don’t know”. This view seems to be the view of many of the artists mentioned in the Spirituality chapter. This view could also apply to Maurizio Cattelan’s piece “La Nona Ora (the Ninth Hour). This controversial piece can be depicted in many ways, however I think maybe Cattelan was trying to say that they too do not know the answer. Also maybe in attempt to make the point that whether full blown atheist or Christian, they are both just as bad, because in reality no one actually knows if there is a higher power or not.

The chapter also brought up science. Science and religion have both been interesting topics to me, especially when they are combined. I read an article in Time magazine about the “religious gene”. It’s a gene that makes people crave something to believe in. This gene is stronger in some people than it is in others, hints the reason why some people are religious fanatics and others are not. Regardless of the fact whether this gene is the sole provider for why people insist on basing their lives on ethereal sources, it is impossible for people to believe in this gene. The reason for this is because it is science, it is concrete, and people want to believe in something that they cannot see before there own eyes. They want to believe in something that can do the impossible. Whatever people believe, it is neither wrong nor right, and I feel that it will always be a topic of interest even to those who choose not to naively say, “I know”.

Robertson, Jean, and Craig McDaniel. Themes of Contemporary Art: Visual Art after 1980. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Repetitive Reverie

This chapter offers some interesting insights to religious and spiritual art, and I paid close attention to the assessment of popular reaction to art as religious experience. While I believe art can instigate a transcendental state, Robertson and McDaniel write that many are "skeptical about the ability of art to provide an experience of transcendence." (286)

With works such as Shirazeh Houshiary's Turning Around the Center, this is a valid point. While elegant and full of religious significance, her piece does not exactly awaken the sensory overload we connect with most religious experience. However, Fred Tomaselli's painting, Untitled (Expulsion), is a perfect example of how art might induce a feeling akin to religious fervor.

In the piece, a stark background is contrasted with bright objects, making a pattern of light and dark, objects are repeated at regular intervals, and everything spouts from a single font in rigid line formation: pattern is everything in this piece. Even the bodies of the rejected Adam and Eve join into the pattern-making process--the veins that snake throughout their body create alternaitng bands of light and dark red, mimicking the light and dark of the overactive wellspring that created them, the one they are now forced to leave. It is here in patterning that we find a religious experience: according to Robertson and McDaniel, "these patterns have the effect of slowing down looking, overwhelming the senses, and opening the door to a dreamlike consciousness." (285) Common sense would dictate this connection as well. In order to achieve trance, in both western and eastern religions, many people use rhythmic chants, low lighting, and slow breathing techniques. Even repeated the rosary over and over can be used to meet the same end. Pattern and repetition are an important aspect of unlocking religious experience, and I feel Tomaselli's painting is an accurate recreation of what is necessary to induce reverie.

Robertson, Jean, and Craig McDaniel. Themes of Contemporary Art. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2010. 273-297.

Manipulating Forms, Materials, and Processes in Art

All religions have certain symbols, materials, and processes that they hold scared to them. “As with particular forms, the use of certain physical materials can signal religious or spiritual content”, for example, the cross is a scared symbol for Christians, something that is very familiar to those of us who live in the south here in the United States. ” (pg 282). So what if artists mixed certain religious symbols together to make a particular piece of art. What kinds of reactions would this mixer receive? And is this process a manipulation of symbols or is it manipulation at all? Or is this mixer just another form of spiritual expression? Chris Ofili’s The Holy Virgin Mary would be a good representation of the combination of religious and spiritual beliefs in artwork. Chris Ofili’s The Holy Virgin Mary contains heavy Christian influences. The Virgin Mary is a key figure in the Christian religion and two; the gold background, found in Christain artwork, is another Christian element that, according to Robertson and McDaniel, represents sacred ground. (pg 282). The mixer comes when Ofili’s puts in the dung, which is an African symbol of fertility, claims Robertson and McDaniel (pg 282). Mixing these symbols, materials, and processes together, I believe, is a form of expression, and its manipulation too, but in the sense that you’re moving and arranging elements which hold special meaning to that artist or individual. What I mean is, maybe the artist is taking certain symbols from different religious or spiritual groups and combing them together to create a new spiritual or religious meaning that takes form in an artistic expression. The combination of beliefs systems found in this artwork may hold some special meaning for the artist, maybe this piece of artwork is a representation of what the artist holds sacred, even though others find it insulting.

Robertson, Jean and Craig McDaniel. "Themes of Contemporary Art, Visual Art after 1980." New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2010. Print.

Freemasons: We will never know.

I have been interested in freemasonry ever since I saw National Treasure. I since learned that my grandfather was a mason. This really sent my imagination spiraling. Everyone knows it’s a secret organization and there has been talk about horrific rituals that are involved in this secret brotherhood: “A number of key Masonic authors suggest that corruption has been woven into the Order since its inception and is present among the vast array of loosely related variations of the basic Craft degrees” (Lynn 102). It is so talked about now and I feel we all assume well known people in today’s society are members. One reason I believe this is probably due to Dan Brown’s latest novel, The Lost Symbol. (I highly recommend it).

I think that freemasonry within Barney’s Cremaster Cycle is irrelevant, because it’s one mans artwork that may or may not contain Masonic symbols. It may be interesting to see, just like it is interesting to read about in Dan Brown’s fictional novel. There is no way of knowing for sure if anything we believe of the brotherhood is indeed true. Therefore I think it is a moot point to discuss it in art.

Brunet, Lynn. "Hoamge to Freemasonry or Indictment? The Cremaster Cycle." Project Muse (2009): 102. Web. 28 Apr 2010.

Homage to Freemasonry or Indictment?

In Lynn Brunet's "Homage to Freemasonry or Indictment? The Cremaster Cycle," freemasonry symbols and rituals are explored through visual art. Brunet begins by discussing some of the historical perspective of The Order calling it "secret fraternal order and is based on a science of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols"(Lynn p.98). She reviews how deeply rooted the masons are in American and British history by pointing out famous historical figures. The Cremaster Cycle seeks to explain subtle meanings and reasons of the secret society by using “cryptic references to Freemasonry, its history, rituals, and symbolism"(Lynn p.98). This series seems intricately crafted and supported by biases and misconceptions that society has about the masons.

As I read through the article, I found it very interesting. However, due to my personal lack of knowledge about the Cremaster series or freemasons in general, I'm unfamiliar with all the symbols and meanings that Burnet discusses. I think I would have a deeper appreciation of this article and topic if it were something I were more familiar with.