Spirituality Endures

Spirituality is a part of humanity that can be seen in every culture and in every time period in some form or another. Humans have always sought answers to questions about their origin, purpose, and their place in the world. Spirituality is something that has been used to answer these questions. Certain Native American cultures explained the world in a cyclical way and put great importance on the spirituality of the natural world, European cultures adopted a biblical world-view and put much emphasis on the afterlife and obedience to an all-powerful God figure, and countless other cultures have adopted religions or spiritual world-views of their own. Because art is also something that permeates cultures all over the world and throughout history, it has been tied to spirituality countless times and in numerous forms. Robertson and McDaniel write, "Spiritual art has death addressed humanity's most profound needs and life's greatest mysteries; beliefs about moral codes that guide private and public behavior have all been explored in art" (278). Art has been used to explain or teach religious and spiritual concepts, adorn religious buildings, and inspire viewers emotionally.

In the many art history classes I have taken spirituality has been mentioned in every one. I have considered how prevalent it is in individual periods or movements, but I have just now realized how prevalent it is throughout all of art history. For instance, Byzantine and Northern Renaissance art was heavily religious. Religious art was often used didactically and as a way to scare people into obedience to God. In Northern Renaissance prayer books illustrations were used to explain biblical stories, which was helpful to the great number of illiterate individuals at the time. In Catholic churches beautiful golden and awe-inspiring artwork decorated the walls in order to foster feelings of religious ecstasy in the congregation, while paintings like Michelangelo's Last Judgement have been used to foster feelings of terror in relation to Hell and sinful acts. Later works became more spiritual rather than overtly religious. For example, the painting of the Hudson River School evoked the Sublime. Edmund Burke defines the Sublime: as Robertson and McDaniel write, "a feeling that combines a sense of awe, horror, and supreme aesthetic pleasure...When the concept was attached to nature, the sublime described an awed reaction to viewing mountain vistas, vast oceans, extraordinary thunderstorms, blizzards, magnificent sunsets, and the life" (279). Artist like Thomas Cole painted awesome scenes of nature meant to inspire the viewer spiritually. The sublime power of nature was captured in works like The Oxbow as a metaphor for the power of God. Spirituality has always been prevalent in art history. Though today many artists have strayed away from spiritual themes, many still investigate spirituality and religion through art. People have the same questions about their origins, the after-life, and the universe as their ancestors. For this reason, I do not think that spirituality is something that will ever disappear from the art world.