8 July 2024
This is the second of three blogs from our guest contributor The Revd Dr Ayla Lepine.
Ayla is a Visiting Scholar here at Sarum College who has contributed to a number of our courses. She writes as an art historian and theologian who serves as Associate Rector at St James’s Piccadilly in London. Ayla’s three blogs reflect on the intersection of arts and theology, drawing on her own experiences and her ministry.
Thinking about the interaction of culture and theology is central to our work in the College. Art, together with literature, poetry and music, expresses something of our concerns, values and beliefs as a society. It also gives us opportunity to employ our imaginations as we seek to explore our identity, our avenues for personal growth and flourishing, and the ways in which we can shape society for the better.
by The Revd Dr Ayla Lepine
The National Gallery, which celebrates its bicentenary this year, is one of the world’s best-known collections of paintings. Compared to the millions of objects in the British Museum or the Victoria and Albert Museum, the National Gallery’s collection is tiny: just 2500 paintings, nearly all of which were produced c.1300-1900 in Western Europe. Projects, exhibitions, and networks at the National Gallery have frequently focused on religion and the arts. A series of films, publications and exhibitions, all available online for free, make connections between faith, community, and the visual arts in ways that offer new insights into the power of art and the possibilities of theology.
Three examples are:
Within the National Gallery’s series of talks by contemporary artists about paintings in the collection that inspire them, the Kosovan refugee artist Alketa Xhafa Mripa chose to explore women’s power and justice in relation to Artemisia’s image of a saint whose boldness and intelligence were key reasons for her martyrdom. In this film, Xhafa Mripa makes connections between her installation of thousands of donated dresses suspended over a football pitch, titled ‘Thinking of You’ and Artemisia’s 17th-century painting. ‘Thinking of You’ impactfully tells the story of 20,000 women who endured and survived sexual assault and rape during the 1998-99 Kosovo War.
A Closer Look: Orazio Gentileschi’s ‘The Finding of Moses’ (which illustrates this post)
Taking the monumental 1630s painting, The Finding of Moses, as its starting point, this film features reflections by a Jewish rabbi, a Church of England priest, a Muslim artist, and the Director of the Foundling Museum: Rabbi Dr Deborah Kahn-Harris, Revd Ninus Khako, Ali Cherri, and Caro Howell. The story of Moses interlaces through the history of London, the suffering and hope of refugee journeys, the experience of belonging and faith, and the need for community.
Fruits of the Spirit: Art from the Heart
This exhibition and catalogue (featuring over 20 authors from museum, community, and theological perspectives), pairs highlights in the National Gallery’s collection, including Monet’s Water-Lilies and Van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait, with works of art from collections across the UK including Canterbury Cathedral and Birmingham’s Barber Institute of Fine Art. Fruits of the Spirit is inspired by St Paul’s list of positive qualities for individuals and communities in Galatians 5.22: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Contributors include therapists, poets, artists, activists and curators, each with a story to share in relation to well-known and unexpected works of art.
The Revd Dr Ayla Lepine is leading a half-day online on 11 December – details via the link below:
Art for Advent: The Four Last Things
In the meantime, if you’d like to explore the intersection of art and theology further, there are a number of other forthcoming courses to consider:
Creation and Creativity – Painting with Sunlight (20 July)
Inspiration and Imagination: Creative Expressions of the Spiritual Life (9-12 Sept)
Environment, Art, Theology & Action (18 Sept)
Painting Icons Retreat (4-6 Oct)
Theology and Human Culture (14-17 Oct)
A History of Sacred Music by Women (17 Oct)
Creative Writing for Challenging Times (4-5 Dec)
Leave a Reply