How Art Can Help Save the World | Boston Talk pt.3 

49:00 A black jesus for the sake of cultural politics 🙄 Christian art is a natural, organic outflow from a christian life, not a deliberated Intention to convey your limited personal preferences. You don't start with Intent. You work with the idiom first and see where it leads you. This is why 'christian' movies are so awful to watch. Because they start out with the Intention to make a 'christian' movie. The worldview and ethos of your art is an outflow of your life lived in Christ. If it be deep and real, it will manifest as such. If it's shallow and superficial, that would be apparent too in the finished work.

The race question was well handled... Imagine being able to ask Jonathan anything, and then asking him that. Wow. Lame. To each his own I guess.

I really enjoyed this talk Jonathan. Thank you. Just a note: The films of Andrei Tarkovsky are beautiful examples of what is possible in art outside the church. “I see it as my duty to stimulate reflection on what is essentially human and eternal in each individual soul, and which all too often a person will pass by, even though his fate lies in his hands. He is too busy chasing after phantoms and bowing down to idols. In the end, everything can be reduced to the one simple element which is all a person can count upon in his existence: the capacity to love. That element can grow within the soul to become the supreme factor which determines the meaning of a person's life. My function is to make whoever sees my films aware of his need to love and to give his love, and aware that beauty is summoning him.” ― Andrei Tarkovsky, Sculpting in Time

Next Symbolic World T-Shirt: Black Jesus.

I thought you had not been uploading. I have the notification bell on this channel and I was surprised to check your channel and find many of new videos. RU-vid is 100% hiding this in my subscription feed.

Jonathan, I am so glad that you put out these videos about art. At the moment I study illustration at an art school and your videos helped me a lot on the path of becoming an artist. I still have a long way to go in understanding completely what you are saying and bringing it into my artistic practice.

Well done!!! I’m learning so much thank you for your time Jono

On the topic of the racial depiction of Jesus at 49:00---I have a two contradictory thoughts on the exchange. I wish he would have actually orbited around his final point in that exchange more: that depictions of Christ in folkish absorptions of the tradition have slightly re-scuplted him to fit the community's needs. (He used Ethiopia for example) This to me resonates with the idea that the image of Christ is That Which Can Die and Be Ressurected... the Logos which is hiding in all things. To those who need to see him, Christ appears, I suppose. So yeah by all means, create a black or brown Jesus. The Spanish, The Celts, The Greeks, the Romans have all done this to subtle degrees anyway, deeply informed by their aesthetic traditions, but tensed with the "Nazarene" tradition--the two motivations are in meaningful dialogue. But furthermore, I wish he would have emphasized that Jesus being a 1) Roman-occupied 2) Backwoods 3) Essene (ish) Jews makes him sort of the universal archetype of a marginalized figure, *and* interestingly, smack dab in the center of the world...a perfect venn diagram of space and time.. (the *Cross*? C'mon! Haha). The absolute need to shunt his imagery into an ameliorating political narrative seems a little deaf to his original context. The whole victory in Christ is His transcendence from the hyperlocal into the universal, the bridging of the Earth and Heaven. It's for this reason that it's actually deeply meaningful to me that I *dont* look like Jesus. He *isnt* me and I am not Him, but I can be With Him.... we Translate. Pentecost, baby!

Hearing from Jonathan that a parade, procession or going to Mass is better than dressing up and sitting, bored & passive for 3 hours at a concert or schlepping to a museum several hours from home. Righteous!

This really makes me reconsider my view on what I consider art. The post modern world has gotten to me. Thank you for your valuable insight.

the true artist is a bridge between the human & the divine .... thank you ...

That racially charged business at the end. It couldn't have missed the point more. Goodness

Hold up... You carved the icon of the royal martyrs that's at Holy Cross Monastery?

46:28 very powerful "hmh" Heirarchy bro.

*More scandalous than printed icons, is the poor architecture* I get what you're saying, but it's hysterical to hear.

I've had exactly these feelings for as long as I can remember, but never managed to express them even half as eloquently as this. Thank you so much for helping me to map out and understand my own cognitions.

43:00 I'd go further than Jonathan here --- a surface level evangelical message is at odds with good art. Art doesn't preach --- good art might hint at a deep truth that ultimately steers someone towards God. But if the art begins at a message of evangelism, that very message is blocking off the deeper roots that good art needs to be anchored in. I'm reminded of how every other Hollywood director feels a "responsibility" to shoehorn halfhearted political activism into their films these days --- and how that unfailingly detracts from the broader artistic work.

"You're embodying the upside down quite well" a new compliment to give when necessary

I personally see no problem talking about Christ's "race" specially if he took his body glorified with him, even in anachronistic terms. For example in Revelation 1:15 he is depicted with hair like wool and skin like burnt copper. Sounds pretty afrocentric to me, and im so here for it!

I love Jonathan. I cannot get past his participative art idea without examining video games in any detail. He could simply be transposing the success of video games into moving the high art back out into the world so that people can participate in art the same way they do in video games, that would make sense and is likely an uncharitable and low resolution interpretation of Jonathan's talks. Video games are much larger forms of entertainment than film & tv, they really can't be ignored in a discussion about art. Jonathan seems only interested in giving back to nature and the grounded church, doing so leaves gaps.

I have heard Jonathan talk about the art being in the artist and residing there before. I love that he is explaining this more fully! I am an art therapist, and his distinction that art is not the artist expressing HIMSELF is exactly the reason art therapy is therapy. The artist creating his or her piece in the therapeutic context is what allows the art to express the unrealized, or inexpressible and bring it to awareness for healing and growth. It's a lot more than that, and so is art for art's sake, but it's a realization for me as an artist and a practitioner of art therapy. Anyway, I just got a little excited.

HEGEL opined that the architecture is the least artform, least fitting for expressing the life of SPIRIT.

I wish these were Longer without q&a

This is really good, thanks!

All the world's a stage,(Architecture plays a huge role) and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances...

The highest form of art, is architecture. - The degrading of architecture is the biggest scandal of modernity (including post-modernity of course).

Hi Jonathan I'm wondering if you could maybe talk a bit about the symbolism of a promise to the universe, and the symbolism of breaking a promise made to your self and the universe and why it has such sever consequences that almost seem mystical. Thanks for everything. God bless you

I totally agree with you that artists should think about the utility of their work more. I think you’ve mentioned that you understand Spanish, so I highly recommend you watch some of Antonio Garcia Villaran’s RU-vid videos. He’s an atheist, but he makes a lot of the same argument you do about the problems with the current art scene.

Hi there, who is the architect you mention who wrote Trust and fancy? And where can I find the book? Thanks!

Thank you for this video. It was much needed at this point in my spiritual journey AND earthly life as a creative minded person. I’m 35, highly creative imagination (which gets tiresome) and still no clue how to bring both together to serve God as well as keep growing in my faith and in my artistic skills and ability to support mine and my children’s existence.

"An artist if he's truly an artist MUST do the will of God, and he must" - P.M. Dawn. The artist perhaps being everyman and our art is our life, and what beauty or horror we choose to express. Yes, there are artists in pop culture who explicitly try to express God and their view of Christ. The musical group quoted have CD's titled: "Jesus Wept" and "Of the Heart, of the Soul, and of the Cross". Definitely worth a listen for their perspective on the Christ. I have enjoyed your examinations of symbolism in movies and pop culture. I agree that even those artforms that try and express the darker aspects of our world (see the HR Gieger documentary), if one can understand their "upside down" viewpoint they can be cautionary tales.

@35:00 This guy at first had my eyes rolling but then summed up my biggest issue with my own personal faith journey my whole life which is, HOW CAN WE BE MADE IN GODS IMAGE THEN TURN THE WORLD TO THIS ????? How do you rightly meet spiritual with humanity when modernization lies between????

notes: 0:53 Recapture a vision of art which would be fuller, which would be more encompassing of reality, more aware of what it means to act in the world, what is exactly the power that we have as human beings made in the image of God, how is it that we can understand that. 1:41 Ananda Coomaraswamy 2:20 Sometime we need someone from outside to point to that which is important for us 2:48 The word "art" (in latin) means "well fitted together", something which is well put together. 3:12 Art remains in the artist Art is the capacity that a person (the artisan) has to fit things well together. 3:34 The role of the human beings with others - to have the capacity to fit things well together. 4:00 Body of the Church (Saint Paul) - body well fitted together in love. That's how communion exists,.how world becomes peace. Things all on their proper place. . By the way words "peace" and "world" are the same in russian ("мир" - [myr]). 4:36 "The artist is not a special kind of man, but every man is a special kind of artist". (Ananda Coomaraswamy) 5:34 Action happens in the thing and in people who participate in that thing. . Participative nature of art . Significance of recognition from other people who consider thing good is like significance of attention itself for manifestation of reality. Attention (and judgement) of artisan itself is not enough and may not be free from involvement with a thing. And difference (distance) between internal and external is not big enough to matter (to be analogous to a more wide problem of separation). It's like a difference in monologue between one who talks and one who listens compared to difference in dialogue. Difference is source of richness. Also presence of thing is small (there is not enough influence on that which is outside event of a thing), it doesn't extend in a world. Not enough power. And without it (without affirmation) there is no basis for participation. Thing should be present, should be available. 6:11 The artisan, the good artist is pulling material things together, revealing the essence of something, but he inevitably also doing that in a community. It's a participative act. 7:29 Museum is a cemetery for objects. 7:53 Lower and higher forms of participation or culture. 8:57 Problems with popular understanding of art (distinctions). Heidegger "Question concerning technology". In the ancient world word for "art" and "technology" are the same ("techne") and they are both applied knowledge. 10:02 Breaking down the very presupposition of art 10:39 Techne (art) is a form of truth, a form of unveiling, act of revealing. This revealing gathers together in advance the aspect and the matter of the thing with the view to the finished thing envisioned as completed. 11:35 Thus what's decisive in techne does not lie at all in naming and manipulating, not the using of means, but it's rather the revealing of the thing that is being brought together. And it is as revealing and not as manufacturing that techne is a bringing forth. 12:08 The purpose of the artist is to express the thing that he is expressing. 12:56 Orthodox Arts Journal 13:25 What the highest thing you can celebrate in art? The God, Glory of God. 14:05 14:19 14:35 Andrew Gould 15:10 Highest art is architecture. It's so important that we forget it. It defines the very spaces if our life. It defines what we consider inside, what we consider inside. The basic categories of human existence are defined by architecture. Architecture is the most participative form of art. You live, work, worship inside these buildings. 16:20 17:03 18:24 18:56 19:41 20:30 21:00 21:35 elitist 21:58 It's only about things being in their proper place 22:22 23:07 23:34 on Gods Dog (on the story of Saint Christopher) 24:46 25:58 on Artifact, organization that helps people to rediscover the art as participation point is to bring communion, togetherness receiving people as an art singing folk songs together telling stories, folk stories, your own story 28:01 How do you tell the story so that it's gripping and useful for the person? 28:11 Work of Nicholas Kotar 28:32 Implicit expression of pattern Understanding patterns as patterns of reality enables participation 29:22 Christ is the good thing hidden in all. And even the bad things has something good (like possibility of repentance). 29:40 Showing powerful pattern of reality in a different language (It's like analogies - you notice something that is different, but expresses the same thing) 30:23 What ultimately artists can do - help people see, showing the essence of something that may wake Nous (spiritual intuition) (help people get involved into more full participation with the world) 31:09 "all fairies are still there" Questions: 31:48 33:02 35:16 36:46 39:22 39:52 40:05 43:09 45:15 on Dostoevsky 46:29 49:12 50:03 51:25 timeless, the longer you can recognize reality in it 52:19 nature and convention 53:04 on basis of convention, naturalists, problem with applying their thing to themselves, somehow staying above the world, thinking that you can analyze it, without being in it (or connected with it)

THANK YOU, Jonathan.

Part 1, please!

Great talk, Jonathan. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thanks for this.

HEIDEGGER was intimately concerned with certain other Question too, the Question which was oft discussed in traditional Beer Houses at the time. And as to clothing as art, HEIDEGGER thought highly of Hugo Boss. Might PAGEAU be saying something else to those discerning BUCKOS with ears to hear?

Early morning treat

I hope your feeling better. I loved this talk . Isn't there a bit in Scripture about the J man having woolen hair ? Like an Afro. I like that swarthy Greek Jesus.

Sacred Liturgy is the most important art from. You are spending to much time with Bishop Baron.

I really needed this thanks. I have a big project for the lord.

art should be to glorify Jesus, biblical themes & bring our minds to concentrate on heavenly things & the world to come. Destroy the idols & the art of the heathen. BURN IT DOWN 🔥🔥🔥 DESTROY THE DEMONS!!!

I forgot to unfollow you lol