Monday, 20 May 2013
Voice and Representation
I always feel hesitant to give my opinion on what other cultures should be doing. I'm aware of my own privileged status as a white male, and tend to get irritated with others like me for speaking out on issues that are either none of their concern, or they can't possibly fully understand.
However, given that, I have some general thoughts on culture and the Arts and the merits of distinct voices being given an opportunity to tell their stories. Essentially, I see opportunities for everyone to benefit in a number of ways. The mainstream / dominant culture is broadened and benefits from seeing other perspectives, while the minority / indigenous culture is empowered and given a voice. There are also opportunities for collaboration - as was pointed out in the Raheja reading - a valuable process in terms of both strengthening relationships between the participants and also the results it can generate (Raheja 2011: 195). Collaboration is also a learning experience and has its own value to the individual as well.
Another perhaps overlooked aspect of the Arts is that given the general lack of funding, any program or endeavour that creates opportunities to work shouldn't be rejected out of hand, purely because it doesn't live up to an ideal of how we as the mainstream feel about how indigenous people should be represented / should represent themselves. Deborah Mailman's character in The Secret Life of Us for example, was a strong character that happened to be Aboriginal, yet was multi-faceted and had depth beyond that.
In my experience, indigenous and non-indigenous artists (both actors and musicians) tend to understand that to be paid to create is a privilege that doesn't extend to everyone that would like the opportunity. Individuals can always say no, but shouldn't necessarily be judged too harshly for opting for the money every now and then.
Raheja, M.H. 2010. Visual Sovereignty, Indigenous Revisions of Ethnography, and Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner). In Reservation Reelism : Redfacing, Visual Sovereignty, and Representations of Native Americans in Film. University of Nebraska Press. Ch. 5, Ebook.
Thursday, 9 May 2013
Framing the Media.
I am obsessed with framing. Looking for bias, looking for silences. Commercial networks, and even the ABC, are so consistent in the way they frame stories that it feels as though I am unrepresented and left without a voice on so many national issues. This lack of engagement is frustrating, though for me it arises out of a sense of feeling completely out of touch with mainstream Australia. I imagine it would be a lot worse if I was part of a minority group that, as a result of media portrayal, felt stigmatised, completely misrepresented and completely misunderstood.
It is here the media have to weigh up their responsibilities. Are they to the public, owed fair and balanced reports, with experts providing facts? Or is the media responsible to its owners, to its advertisers and its shareholders, whereby the public are presented with populist reports that re-affirm existing opinions, a dash of celebrity news and a healthy side of sport. It is a comfortable formula, and it is a cheap (non expensive) formula. International stories can be syndicated (from other media organisations owned by the same media group), the political narrative is overly simplified and crime is committed by monsters who need to be kept off the street.
It is the nature of the media machine though. A half hour spot in prime-time is so valuable in terms of viewers (potential consumers) that a low risk approach has to be taken to maximise the opportunity for the companies that are spending money, buying expensive advertising during the commercial breaks of the program. Not only that, but half an hour doesn't allow for context or in depth analysis of more than a couple of stories anyway, particularly when the subject is 'youth crime' or 'religious extremists.' Instead, broad generalisations - that are so far from the truth as to not really mean anything - abound, and viewers are given an appraisal of events that can do more harm than good.
Given this, it is little wonder that minority groups are the targets of vicious attacks, both on line and physical. It is a nasty underbelly that exists not only in Australia, but across North America, Europe and Scandinavia, and it will take a courageous politician or media figurehead to stand up to it and discuss why it's so damaging.
It is here the media have to weigh up their responsibilities. Are they to the public, owed fair and balanced reports, with experts providing facts? Or is the media responsible to its owners, to its advertisers and its shareholders, whereby the public are presented with populist reports that re-affirm existing opinions, a dash of celebrity news and a healthy side of sport. It is a comfortable formula, and it is a cheap (non expensive) formula. International stories can be syndicated (from other media organisations owned by the same media group), the political narrative is overly simplified and crime is committed by monsters who need to be kept off the street.
It is the nature of the media machine though. A half hour spot in prime-time is so valuable in terms of viewers (potential consumers) that a low risk approach has to be taken to maximise the opportunity for the companies that are spending money, buying expensive advertising during the commercial breaks of the program. Not only that, but half an hour doesn't allow for context or in depth analysis of more than a couple of stories anyway, particularly when the subject is 'youth crime' or 'religious extremists.' Instead, broad generalisations - that are so far from the truth as to not really mean anything - abound, and viewers are given an appraisal of events that can do more harm than good.
Given this, it is little wonder that minority groups are the targets of vicious attacks, both on line and physical. It is a nasty underbelly that exists not only in Australia, but across North America, Europe and Scandinavia, and it will take a courageous politician or media figurehead to stand up to it and discuss why it's so damaging.
Sunday, 28 April 2013
Sigur Ros & Attenborough Vs Bliss n Eso & JBT
Sigur Ros & Attenborough Vs Bliss n Eso & JBT
Sigur Ros and Attenborough (via the BBC) win hands down. It's not all Bliss n Eso's (with John Butler's help) fault though, they were up against it from the outset.
Visually - Even putting aside for one moment the music behind these film-clips (the quality of which is admittedly subjective), in the argument for preserving our planet, having the most expensive documentary ever filmed (in the BBC's Planet Earth) on your side is going to go a long way when it's in competition with file footage that had been spliced together. It's not just the quality of the film itself though, but what it's depicting. Attenborough shows the wonders of nature, without a human in sight. Unspolit landscapes abound, and the fierceness of both the natural and animal world is on display. It is so well captured and the absence of humans only reinforces how small we really are, and how well the Earth copes without our influence.
In contrast, the Bliss n Eso clip shows all the worst traits of humanity and reinforces how destructive people can be. I get that it's confronting, and is making a point, but in trying to convince people to save the planet, the clip only made me think the planet would be better off without any humans. Not least Bliss n Eso.
Musically - It's not that I even disagree with Bliss n Eso and John Butler. They're on the right side, and they're arguing for the right things. It's just that it's so poorly done, that they do their message a disservice. Middle class white musicians from the inner city are never going to convince those that are happy to see the environment destroyed to change their mind. They're preaching to the converted (and even then, turning a lot of them off). Again, it's not even the message itself, but rather the delivery. It is so obvious. The lyrics are about as trite and simplistic as lyrics get. If someone had to write a stereotypical Aussie hip hop song regarding protecting the environment and being cool to each other, they would come up with something very similar to that Bliss n Eso (and John Butler) song. Having said that, I don't really know anything about Bliss n Eso, so I may be being unfair. Still, it's right up John Butler's alley, so the same argument applies to him.
Jonsi from Sigur Ros on the other hand, sings in Icelandic, and occasionally Hopelandic (a combination of Icelandic and a made up language he uses to sing in). If nothing else, this prevents any cringe worthy lyrics ruining what might otherwise be a positive or moving experience. At least, it does for people that don't speak Icelandic.
I suppose I am being a bit harsh.
Sigur Ros and Attenborough (via the BBC) win hands down. It's not all Bliss n Eso's (with John Butler's help) fault though, they were up against it from the outset.
Visually - Even putting aside for one moment the music behind these film-clips (the quality of which is admittedly subjective), in the argument for preserving our planet, having the most expensive documentary ever filmed (in the BBC's Planet Earth) on your side is going to go a long way when it's in competition with file footage that had been spliced together. It's not just the quality of the film itself though, but what it's depicting. Attenborough shows the wonders of nature, without a human in sight. Unspolit landscapes abound, and the fierceness of both the natural and animal world is on display. It is so well captured and the absence of humans only reinforces how small we really are, and how well the Earth copes without our influence.
In contrast, the Bliss n Eso clip shows all the worst traits of humanity and reinforces how destructive people can be. I get that it's confronting, and is making a point, but in trying to convince people to save the planet, the clip only made me think the planet would be better off without any humans. Not least Bliss n Eso.
Musically - It's not that I even disagree with Bliss n Eso and John Butler. They're on the right side, and they're arguing for the right things. It's just that it's so poorly done, that they do their message a disservice. Middle class white musicians from the inner city are never going to convince those that are happy to see the environment destroyed to change their mind. They're preaching to the converted (and even then, turning a lot of them off). Again, it's not even the message itself, but rather the delivery. It is so obvious. The lyrics are about as trite and simplistic as lyrics get. If someone had to write a stereotypical Aussie hip hop song regarding protecting the environment and being cool to each other, they would come up with something very similar to that Bliss n Eso (and John Butler) song. Having said that, I don't really know anything about Bliss n Eso, so I may be being unfair. Still, it's right up John Butler's alley, so the same argument applies to him.
Jonsi from Sigur Ros on the other hand, sings in Icelandic, and occasionally Hopelandic (a combination of Icelandic and a made up language he uses to sing in). If nothing else, this prevents any cringe worthy lyrics ruining what might otherwise be a positive or moving experience. At least, it does for people that don't speak Icelandic.
I suppose I am being a bit harsh.
Nature and Collective Poem
We called the Eastern side the Oceanside and it was there that we watched sharks
From Indian Head to sand bars below
we watched with purposeless intent, too and fro
And so they came, dragging in the evening, long eyes stitched to going forward
then disappeared again, dragging our eyes beneath the waves, as if in dream.
From Indian Head to sand bars below
we watched with purposeless intent, too and fro
And so they came, dragging in the evening, long eyes stitched to going forward
then disappeared again, dragging our eyes beneath the waves, as if in dream.
Friday, 19 April 2013
Hyperspace, we're going into hyperdrive.
Reflecting on this weeks (excellent) presentation, and Heidi Campbell's chapter regarding the Abrahamic faiths and their engagement with new media, the sentiments that resonated most strongly with me, in that they seemed to encapsulate the core of what I'd intuitively felt, came from Campbell's elucidation on the Islamic approach to Religion On-Line.
As was discussed in Wednesday's seminar, one of the potential problems with people searching for their spiritual nourishment on line is that they miss out on the physical, collective experience of being around other worshippers, while at the same time contributing to the dwindling participation rates in neighbourhood congregations.
However, this autonomous worship can also lead to a false knowledge of religious texts, and raises the question, 'Is everyone's own interpretation of a religious text equally valid?'
Campbell cites the warning on the homepage of the University of Southern California's Muslim Student Association's Qur'an Database webpage.
"Today, technology is helping bring Islam into the homes of millions of people, Muslim and otherwise. There is a blessing in all this of course, but there is a real danger that Muslim's will fall under the impression that owning a book or having a database is equivalent to being a scholar of Islam.This is a great fallacy. Therefore, we would like to warn you that this database is merely a tool, and not a substitute for learning, much less scholarship in Islam (Campbell 2010: 32)."
Given the enormity and freedom of the Internet, any and all theories and interpretations may be suggested and discussed. This is not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but it seems to me that even among secular groups people tend to like listening to and discussing things with people that agree with them. Amongst certain religious groups however, this potential echo chamber can lead to such misinterpretation of religious texts that the benefits of the space and freedom of on line religious learning are seriously undermined. This though, obviously is not restricted to religious groups, with any number of anti social groups exploiting the same space.
As an Iranian cleric is quoted as saying,
"The internet is like a knife. You can use it to peel fruits, or to kill someone. But that does not mean that the knife is bad (Campbell 2010: 33)."
As was discussed in Wednesday's seminar, one of the potential problems with people searching for their spiritual nourishment on line is that they miss out on the physical, collective experience of being around other worshippers, while at the same time contributing to the dwindling participation rates in neighbourhood congregations.
However, this autonomous worship can also lead to a false knowledge of religious texts, and raises the question, 'Is everyone's own interpretation of a religious text equally valid?'
Campbell cites the warning on the homepage of the University of Southern California's Muslim Student Association's Qur'an Database webpage.
"Today, technology is helping bring Islam into the homes of millions of people, Muslim and otherwise. There is a blessing in all this of course, but there is a real danger that Muslim's will fall under the impression that owning a book or having a database is equivalent to being a scholar of Islam.This is a great fallacy. Therefore, we would like to warn you that this database is merely a tool, and not a substitute for learning, much less scholarship in Islam (Campbell 2010: 32)."
Given the enormity and freedom of the Internet, any and all theories and interpretations may be suggested and discussed. This is not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but it seems to me that even among secular groups people tend to like listening to and discussing things with people that agree with them. Amongst certain religious groups however, this potential echo chamber can lead to such misinterpretation of religious texts that the benefits of the space and freedom of on line religious learning are seriously undermined. This though, obviously is not restricted to religious groups, with any number of anti social groups exploiting the same space.
As an Iranian cleric is quoted as saying,
"The internet is like a knife. You can use it to peel fruits, or to kill someone. But that does not mean that the knife is bad (Campbell 2010: 33)."
References
Campbell, H. When Religion Meets New Media. Taylor and Francis, 2010.
Tuesday, 9 April 2013
Just sayin'.
At least our spiritual lives aren't vulnerable to the market yet. And football clubs do a great deal of good community work. I'm yet to be convinced Nova offers anything though.
Controlling Your Message / Know Your Product
A reflection on Mara Einstein's The Evolution of Religious Branding.
Branding. The marketing people, along with their co-conspirators, the PR people, have taken over and infiltrated just about every facet of society. Certainly every facet of society that brushes up against the media. National folk heroes - our sporting organisations - and folk devils - politicians - are pre-occupied with their image, with teams of advisers seemingly perched on both shoulders whispering in their ears the importance of staying on message. Staying on message, another awful term introduced by these whisperers. To stay on message is to protect the personal brand, the brand of their employee/party and of course, to validate the employment of said whisperer. Like player agents, they've created roles for themselves and convinced those using them that they're indispensable.
Meanwhile commercial media waits, ready to pounce. "In the public interest!" they cry as they expose and humiliate some poor fool caught unaware. Perhaps it is, perhaps it's not. However, these commercial media outlets have their own fallible stable of 'stars' and their own teams of marketers and PR people, to massage any indiscretion to cause the least amount of damage to their brand. It's a game, and a fairly ugly one at that.
And now, with a sense of if you can't beat them... the church, in the face of dwindling attendances and an ageing congregation has too bought into this game. The youth demographic, whether Gen Y or younger, have been raised in this media driven era, where both information and the individual exists as a commodity, so it makes sense for the church, in trying to reach a younger audience, to do so through channels most likely to reach and resonate.
From the privatisation and corporation style structure of the Hillsong Megachurch, to Scientology running a sophisticated on-line awareness campaign, the determined push of marketing and branding into religion has had initial success. But what kind of success? And at what cost?
By targeting such a young demographic, the hope is that the individual will identify with a particular religious brand, and 'spend' both their actual (by way of donations, purchasing merchandise) as well as their spiritual (being an ambassador, getting involved in the community) wealth there. It will be hoped that families become engaged and new generations of worshippers continue to become involved.
In that sense, it has the makings of a long term plan. But it still seems to be a long term plan that hinges in no small part on the continued engagement with youth culture, and youth cultural trends change significantly over the course of if not a few years, then certainly by the decade. People move on.
That's not to suggest that church going is like 80's outfits, or grunge music. But if it begins to be marketed in the same way that more seasonal products and styles are, or governed in the same way that football clubs and FM radio stations are managed, then it risks being devalued to the same level.
Perhaps it goes hand in hand with corporate governance and transparency. Or return on investment. But as much as I love my football team, and some people must love the breakfast crew on Nova, it's a shame that our spiritual lives, too, are exposed to the market.
Branding. The marketing people, along with their co-conspirators, the PR people, have taken over and infiltrated just about every facet of society. Certainly every facet of society that brushes up against the media. National folk heroes - our sporting organisations - and folk devils - politicians - are pre-occupied with their image, with teams of advisers seemingly perched on both shoulders whispering in their ears the importance of staying on message. Staying on message, another awful term introduced by these whisperers. To stay on message is to protect the personal brand, the brand of their employee/party and of course, to validate the employment of said whisperer. Like player agents, they've created roles for themselves and convinced those using them that they're indispensable.
Meanwhile commercial media waits, ready to pounce. "In the public interest!" they cry as they expose and humiliate some poor fool caught unaware. Perhaps it is, perhaps it's not. However, these commercial media outlets have their own fallible stable of 'stars' and their own teams of marketers and PR people, to massage any indiscretion to cause the least amount of damage to their brand. It's a game, and a fairly ugly one at that.
And now, with a sense of if you can't beat them... the church, in the face of dwindling attendances and an ageing congregation has too bought into this game. The youth demographic, whether Gen Y or younger, have been raised in this media driven era, where both information and the individual exists as a commodity, so it makes sense for the church, in trying to reach a younger audience, to do so through channels most likely to reach and resonate.
From the privatisation and corporation style structure of the Hillsong Megachurch, to Scientology running a sophisticated on-line awareness campaign, the determined push of marketing and branding into religion has had initial success. But what kind of success? And at what cost?
By targeting such a young demographic, the hope is that the individual will identify with a particular religious brand, and 'spend' both their actual (by way of donations, purchasing merchandise) as well as their spiritual (being an ambassador, getting involved in the community) wealth there. It will be hoped that families become engaged and new generations of worshippers continue to become involved.
In that sense, it has the makings of a long term plan. But it still seems to be a long term plan that hinges in no small part on the continued engagement with youth culture, and youth cultural trends change significantly over the course of if not a few years, then certainly by the decade. People move on.
That's not to suggest that church going is like 80's outfits, or grunge music. But if it begins to be marketed in the same way that more seasonal products and styles are, or governed in the same way that football clubs and FM radio stations are managed, then it risks being devalued to the same level.
Perhaps it goes hand in hand with corporate governance and transparency. Or return on investment. But as much as I love my football team, and some people must love the breakfast crew on Nova, it's a shame that our spiritual lives, too, are exposed to the market.
Saturday, 30 March 2013
Modern Hymns 2
The two previous songs, Murderer (performed by Low) and I'll Be Glad (performed by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, but written by Shannon Stephens) are among my favourite songs of the last five years or so. They represent quite contrasting perspectives on a personal relationship with God.
Low originate from Duluth, Minnesota. Key members, Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker are married and are practising followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. While they've never marketed themselves as a 'Mormon Band,' their personal religious beliefs have informed aspects of the band's lyrical content throughout their career. Murderer appeared on their 2007 record, Drums and Guns.
Shannon Stephens is a Seattle singer songwriter, whereas Bonnie 'Prince' Billy hails from Louisville, Kentucky. B'P'B covered I'll Be Glad on his 2008 record, Lie Down In The Light.
Low originate from Duluth, Minnesota. Key members, Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker are married and are practising followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. While they've never marketed themselves as a 'Mormon Band,' their personal religious beliefs have informed aspects of the band's lyrical content throughout their career. Murderer appeared on their 2007 record, Drums and Guns.
Shannon Stephens is a Seattle singer songwriter, whereas Bonnie 'Prince' Billy hails from Louisville, Kentucky. B'P'B covered I'll Be Glad on his 2008 record, Lie Down In The Light.
Friday, 29 March 2013
Modern Hymns
Murderer
One more thing before I go
One more thing I ask you, Lord
You may need a murderer
Someone to do your dirty work
Don't act so innocent
I've seen you pound your fist into the earth
And I've read your book
It seems that you could use another fool
Well, I'm cruel and I look right through
You must have more important things to do
So if you need a murderer
Someone to do your dirty work
Low/Mimi Parker, Alan Sparhawk, and Matt Livingston
I'll Be Glad
I'll go anywhere that you do
And if you don't go before
Lord, I don't want to go without you anymore
Meet me in a pillar of fire
Shade me with a big white cloud
Lord, wherever you go, you'll always have me around
You will give my body rest
And never let me thirst
So I'm not going anyway if you don't go there first
And when I see you beckoning me
That's how I'll know
Lord, following your lead is the only way I'll go
When you get your flock together
Please take me along
Lord, I'm too weak to travel
I'll be glad you're strong
And I'll lean on your arm.
Shannon Stephens, Will Oldham
Sunday, 24 March 2013
The New Age
The individualist nature of the typical form of marketed spirituality, that is, a collection of selected beliefs from a variety of religious sources, further entrenches a shallowness and lack of respect for established traditions in the modern consumer society.
At its worst, it echoes the recent trend of 'slacktivism,' an easily opted in-to (or co-opted) cause, where the individual is motivated not by the cause itself, but rather how it reflects on them in the eyes of their peers. More than ever, via social media, an individual's personality and beliefs are things to be constructed and shown off, creating an image for outsiders to see.
This public character construction is unsurprising, as it is a product of the individualist culture we live in. Choice and the market are the twin drivers of our society, and as such we are targeted as consumers from an early age. The individual is lauded.
Everything is for sale, including Religion and Spirituality. The individual can subscribe to whatever belief system they like, and all are equally valid, regardless of their relative merits, because the individual must be affirmed.
At its worst, it echoes the recent trend of 'slacktivism,' an easily opted in-to (or co-opted) cause, where the individual is motivated not by the cause itself, but rather how it reflects on them in the eyes of their peers. More than ever, via social media, an individual's personality and beliefs are things to be constructed and shown off, creating an image for outsiders to see.
This public character construction is unsurprising, as it is a product of the individualist culture we live in. Choice and the market are the twin drivers of our society, and as such we are targeted as consumers from an early age. The individual is lauded.
Everything is for sale, including Religion and Spirituality. The individual can subscribe to whatever belief system they like, and all are equally valid, regardless of their relative merits, because the individual must be affirmed.
Tuesday, 12 March 2013
Beast & Man
The Human as one who suffers, plays, pleads, needs, uses.
The Beast as one who fights, works, takes, survives, ignores.
We are split and equal, though we may suppress and hide.
An animal bone, lying weathered, recycled and given new life.
Teeth pulled, and skin flayed.
The Beast as one who fights, works, takes, survives, ignores.
We are split and equal, though we may suppress and hide.
An animal bone, lying weathered, recycled and given new life.
Teeth pulled, and skin flayed.
If Pain Persists
3 Poems.
Capricorn
Horned head
And yawning maw
We Scream as we awake
In touch with the earth
On all fours
Camelopardalis
Born as crawling animal
We now stand, though require
Our hands to lift our feet
attached by strings
And with beastly head
And with beastly heart
We evolve and regress
Damian and Cosmos
Twin headed
four arms
dead child
we are grotesque
they are as strong as us
we are as frail as they.
Conor Macdonald
13th March 2013
Capricorn
Horned head
And yawning maw
We Scream as we awake
In touch with the earth
On all fours
Camelopardalis
Born as crawling animal
We now stand, though require
Our hands to lift our feet
attached by strings
And with beastly head
And with beastly heart
We evolve and regress
Damian and Cosmos
Twin headed
four arms
dead child
we are grotesque
they are as strong as us
we are as frail as they.
Conor Macdonald
13th March 2013
What We Make of The Wold
We believe that God is already in the world and working in the world. We recognise God's indefinable presence in music, film, arts and other key aspects of contemporary culture. We wish to affirm and enjoy the parts of our culture that give a voice to one of the many voices of God and challenge any areas that deafen the call of God and hence constrain human freedom (Sanctus1, 2002 as quoted in Graham, 2007 p67).
While the above is written from the perspective of a modern Christian movement, the concept of finding traces of God in the Arts is by no means a modern one. Artist Warner Salman spoke of a 'sudden and revelatory mental visualization' that led to his portrait of Jesus, The Head of Christ. David Morgan suggests in The Lure of Images, that 'the image drew its origin from a higher source, not made by human hands' (Morgan, 212).
This indefinable presence or sudden and revelatory experience seems to describe the transcendent potential of art, yet despite the theological beliefs of the Sanctus movement and Warner Salman, this potential is not restricted to Christianity.
Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali poet, won a Nobel Prize in Literature for Gitanjali, (Git - songs, Anjali - offerings) a collection of devotional poems /songs in 1913. The following is the second in the book, and my particular favourite. It too, describes the transcendental potential of art.
I am fascinated by the thought of God as an immeasurable force of nature, existing on the edge of conciousness and able to be glimpsed or felt through art. There is a spiritual feeling associated with a chord change, or a written phrase that makes the hairs on your skin stand up, that cannot be explained. These are moments played or written by mortals, but they retain a timelessness to them that exists outside of what we can touch. Perhaps God lies within, existing as our senses, and our ability to recognise and to feel such things. In transcendence we are actually connecting with our inner selves.
References
Sanctus1. (2002). 'Who we are.' (online), available at: http.www.sanctus1.co.uk/whoweare.php
Graham E. 2007. “What We Make of the World”: The Turn to Culture in Theology and the Study of Religion. In G. Lynch, Ed., Between Sacred and Profane: Researching Religion and Popular Culture. London & New York: I.B. Taurus & Co. Ebook.
Morgan, D. (2007). Facing the Sacred: Image and Charisma. In D. Morgan, Ed., The Lure of Images. A History of Religion and Visual Media in America. London & New York: Routledge.
Tagore, R (1913). Gitanjali http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/tagore/gitnjali.htm
While the above is written from the perspective of a modern Christian movement, the concept of finding traces of God in the Arts is by no means a modern one. Artist Warner Salman spoke of a 'sudden and revelatory mental visualization' that led to his portrait of Jesus, The Head of Christ. David Morgan suggests in The Lure of Images, that 'the image drew its origin from a higher source, not made by human hands' (Morgan, 212).
This indefinable presence or sudden and revelatory experience seems to describe the transcendent potential of art, yet despite the theological beliefs of the Sanctus movement and Warner Salman, this potential is not restricted to Christianity.
Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali poet, won a Nobel Prize in Literature for Gitanjali, (Git - songs, Anjali - offerings) a collection of devotional poems /songs in 1913. The following is the second in the book, and my particular favourite. It too, describes the transcendental potential of art.
When thou commandest me to sing it seems that my heart would break with pride; and I look to thy face, and tears come to my eyes.
All that is harsh and dissonant in my life melts into one sweet harmony---and my adoration spreads wings like a glad bird on its flight across the sea.
I know thou takest pleasure in my singing. I know that only as a singer I come before thy presence.
I touch by the edge of the far-spreading wing of my song thy feet which I could never aspire to reach.
Drunk with the joy of singing I forget myself and call thee friend who art my lord.
I am fascinated by the thought of God as an immeasurable force of nature, existing on the edge of conciousness and able to be glimpsed or felt through art. There is a spiritual feeling associated with a chord change, or a written phrase that makes the hairs on your skin stand up, that cannot be explained. These are moments played or written by mortals, but they retain a timelessness to them that exists outside of what we can touch. Perhaps God lies within, existing as our senses, and our ability to recognise and to feel such things. In transcendence we are actually connecting with our inner selves.
References
Sanctus1. (2002). 'Who we are.' (online), available at: http.www.sanctus1.co.uk/whoweare.php
Graham E. 2007. “What We Make of the World”: The Turn to Culture in Theology and the Study of Religion. In G. Lynch, Ed., Between Sacred and Profane: Researching Religion and Popular Culture. London & New York: I.B. Taurus & Co. Ebook.
Morgan, D. (2007). Facing the Sacred: Image and Charisma. In D. Morgan, Ed., The Lure of Images. A History of Religion and Visual Media in America. London & New York: Routledge.
Tagore, R (1913). Gitanjali http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/tagore/gitnjali.htm
Thursday, 7 March 2013
Having finally returned home, I've turned my attention to creating this blog. I'm not sure how it will go. I may yet try a tumblr. We'll see. In the meantime I'm having a beer and listening to a record called What The Brothers Sang, an album of Everly Brothers songs, performed as duets by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and Dawn McCarthy. It's lovely. Will Oldham, the man behind the B'P'B pseudonym sings often of the transcendental nature of music, and indeed of the life-force within songs themselves. It's a wonderful thing to experience, either through being part of an audience, enthralled at a show, or as performer, alone with your voice and guitar intertwined as instruments. I tend to believe that the most fulfilling experience occurs as part of a group, where when things are going well, be it for periods as small as seconds or minutes, you all exist on a higher, separate level from the audience, outside of time.
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