Karitos Conference 2015

Karitos Conference 2015

The mission of Karitos is to provide Biblically-based artistic and technical growth experiences to Christian artists.

Be ready.

Take a look.

Your Artistic Life? Are You Guilty?

You call yoursekf a Christian artist, or maybe an artist who is a Christian.

How is that indicated? Are you taking both faith and art seriously?

Ask yourself this: if on trial, suspected of being a Christian artist, what evidence would they have against you?
Or would the judge say, "This guy? All talk. Set him free. He is no worry to us."

How Do You Bring Your Art Out of Hiding?

Hiding good things under a basket?

1. Do you show your work in a gallery?
2. Submit it to publishers?
3. Self-publish it?
4. Work with your church to lead a program?
5. Train kids at VBS?
6. Work with your community to promote the arts?
7. Teach?

You tell me. Give me ideas.

The Aim of Art?

"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance."
- Aristotle

What do you think? 

When Did You First Realize You Were An Artist?

Any ideas?

2011? Will this be the year you take your art more seriously?

Lots of artists love talking about art, but when it comes to getting it done, well -- is this going to be the year?

Self-discipline sounds like a dirty word in art. Getting up early, working hard, drafting, crafting, editing, repainting. However, self-discipline finishes the job.

If God has ordained you, are you willing to be a martyr?

2011 is here.

Search Amazon.com for Sistine Chapel puzzle

Christmas Art, Anyone?

Do you have examples of your art with Christmas themes? Besides the usual mangers and shepherds, or caroles and egg nog?

Post them as responses here.

Search Amazon.com MP3 Downloads for Christmas

What Do You Do As An Artistic Discipline?

Artistic Discipline?

Musicians play scales? Painters practices strokes? Poets test forms? What do you do?

The easy answer is what you should do. That's not discipline. That's talking about discipline.

I'm looking for great ideas, even unorthodox ones. What do you actually do? How does it help?



Search Amazon.com for Adobe Creative Suite 5

Calligrapher Timothy R. Botts: Bound for Glory - Chicago-Area Show

Artwork by Calligrapher Timothy R. Botts, Inspired by Spirituals, Now on Display
March 18, 2010

New artwork by calligrapher and illustrator Timothy R. Botts will be on display in the Billy Graham Center Museum at Wheaton College through September 8, 2010.

The exhibit, titled, “Bound for Glory: New Work by Timothy Botts” is a collection of more than 30 works of art inspired by African-American spirituals.

An artist’s reception will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, March 18, with a performance by members of the Wheaton College Gospel Choir.

“With this new body of work I want to celebrate the incredible gift of music that African Americans gave to the church and to the whole world,” Botts says. “It is especially amazing that these people who, though enslaved by Christians, saw through their hypocrisy and met the real Jesus. I pray that the visual interpretations of this spirit-filled music will be an instrument of healing and reconciliation among us.”

The pieces incorporate influences from traditional American quilts, and from the quilts of the Gees Bend community in Alabama. Botts was also inspired by traditional African art and writing systems, as well as by urban graffiti.

Award-winning author and journalist Patricia Raybon provided captions for the works. Her personal essays on faith, family and race relations have been published in The New York Times Magazine, Newsweek, USA Today, and other nationally recognized media outlets.

Bound for Glory: New Work by Timothy R. Botts opened March 4, and will be on display through September 8, 2010. Museum hours are Monday-Saturday, 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. and Sunday, 1:00-5:00 p.m. There is a suggested donation of $4 for general admission, $3 for students and seniors, $1 for children under twelve and $10 for families.

The Billy Graham Center Museum is located at 500 College Avenue in Wheaton (campus map). The museum offers free parking and is wheelchair accessible. For more information, call 630.752.5909 or visit www.billygrahamcenter.com/museum

http://www.timbotts.com/

High School Artists?

Masterpiece Ministries
http://masterpieceministries.org/

Based near Nashville, TN, a center of music nationally, with a great emphasis in arts in general, is Masterpiece Ministries.

Music. Film. Dance. Theater. Painting. Writing. Graphic Design.

The impact of the creative world on our culture is irrefutable. The arts stretch our imagination and know few boundaries. However, there exists a chasm of acceptance and understanding between the church and those wonderfully complex humans we call artists.

Gordon and Sherrie Rogers have worked with young people for over 35 years at church, in their own home, and through Sherries adolescent and family therapy. They discovered that young artists often do not fit in well with church-sponsored youth programs that emphasize physical recreation. To close the gap, they founded Masterpiece Ministries in 1995 with a mission to help young people identify and develop their gifts in the arts and to encourage them to become wholehearted followers of Jesus Christ.

Christian Art Teacher: Jack Burgess: From Painting the Hills of Kentucky to Enriching the Lives of Students

Jack Burgess: Living Curriculum Teacher: From Painting the Hills of Kentucky to Enriching the Lives of Students or in the Trib Local here.

Jack teaches Digital Photography, Graphic Design, and Painting at Wheaton Academy and is known by his colleagues as a creative, godly teacher. He wears many hats, including ad hoc artist at WA, called upon for his professional assistance in everything from branding to website layout. His Winterim course for set design brings students together who want to learn the art and craft of theater stage design, skills used in Wheaton Academy’s musical.

Books about art, design, education and collaboration fill Jack Burgess’ classroom. Student art and photography cover the walls. Piled in corners and leaning against his desk are a banjo, juggling pins, and a balancing device which looks like a cross between a skateboard and a see-saw. There is purpose to all of this, says Jack, “It’s about creating a creative space, where inspiration is always just a few feet away, where risk taking is encouraged.”

See the June Connection here.

Focus on Faith: Jewish artist expresses Christian beliefs in works

Focus on Faith: Jewish artist Ramsdale expresses Christian beliefs in works
Sunday, March 22, 2009
By Bill Buell (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
Marilyn Heisman Ramsdale has endured some struggles in her life, and she doesn’t mind talking about them and sharing with others just how she got through them all.

An Albany native now living in South Bethlehem, Ramsdale has a spiritual story that’s a bit more complicated than others: She’s a Messianic Jew, which means she believes in Jesus Christ despite the fact that she grew up in a Jewish family and continues to call herself Jewish.
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Christian Art Show in Illinois - Lively Arts to Exhibit Their Work

Lively Arts will be doing an exhibit at La Spiaza. March 5 to April 5. Above is the official flyer designed by Tim Botts.

The artists will be available to discuss their works, including Lively Arts founder and calligrapher, Tim Botts, and Natalie Lombard, banner artist.

The exhibit features the works of Tim Botts, Scott Davis, Gary Lobdell, Natalie Lombard, Frank Nicholas, Kathy Schneider, Dan Stulz, and Colleen Yang.

The show's opening will include a spoken word performance by Anthony Trendl and guitar by Scott Davis. They will perform together "Love Song for Charlie Parker," an homage to the Beats, and other pieces.

La Spiaza Coffee House
114 N Main St
Wheaton, IL 60187
(630) 221-8772

Lively Arts is a gathering of Christian artists, meeting the fourth Monday of every month for show-n-tell, and to connect artists with the church and the community.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17, NIV

click image to see full size

Strong Arguments on a Shaky Premise - Review - The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution

The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution

"The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution" by Denis Dutton concludes itself before it begins, and it does so masterfully. It tries too hard, and asks too much of the reader, all with more aplomb than solid premise.

Charles Darwin argued a species evolved to protect itself, to multiply itself in his theory of evolution. All instincts meet that function, one way or another; no instinct exists that does not meet that function except for anomalies that are bleed from the gene pool.

Art, says Dutton, is instinctual. I caught this in the rambling introduction, and on the back flap. The back flap owns great praise summed up by Steven Pinker, a psychologist (not an artist or biologist or geneticist) who is listed six times in the bibliography. That's far more than any other author (including Kant, Derrida and Aristotle). That's except for Dutton himself, who happens to list himself six times as well.

In other words, his introduction was a chapter in itself, but lacks the strength of a good structure.

He does not adequately show why beautiful birds', in their beauty, are form and not just function, and how, if that is true, humans are part of this. Instinct's goal is never art for art's sake, but pure function without form. The base animal mind is not asking for art, but for a way to gauge the worthiness of a mate.

He tries to define art, which he agrees is a dicey thing to pin down, loaded with bias, knowledge issues and "personal idiosyncrasies." He dodges around the cultural differences, while swooning toward tribal art with only the most vague critique.

Among his larger challenges are ones surrounding the Dadaist movement, and forgery. This begs back to his chapter, "What Is Art?" Not Dutton, nor I, can clear up whether Dadaism is art or just a philosophically statement. He rightfully cites "Fountain," the urinal signed by Marcel Duchamp in 1917 as a pinnacle of what the Dadaists offered.

Dutton sees art as including the visual, musical and literary arts, and tries to respond to all of them at once, integrated and interdependent. That might be more than his small book can handle, as the topic requires several times the volume to make the necessary points.

Readers, in turn, cannot appreciate the book without a vast range of knowledge in each area. Dutton includes notes, but misses the opportunity to quote more from, at least, the literary pieces. Pictures, too, are in order. I caught myself reading this with an online search engine and encyclopedia opened, and even then, am not convinced I understood all his allusions.

Art may have, in its past, some kind of instinctual use, but Denis Dutton does not prove it. "The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution," discusses making an argument for itself, but never really lands. As Dutton himself once asserted about another writer, his book "beats readers into submission and instructs them that they are in the presence of a great and deep mind."

I'm not so sure.

Anthony Trendl
http://AnthonyTrendl.blogspot.com
http://anthonytrendl.com/

Christian Artist Robert Mullenix's Work To Appear at Merchandise Mart (Chicago)

Robert Mullenix, a fine artist based in Ohio, will have his paintings displayed in a much larger show at Chicago's Merchandise Mart, on the 7th floor. He is a Christian who happens to be an artist. Although his themes are not always directly Christian, they are consistent with looking at the glory of God, with piece titles pointing Heavenward.

The show is December 4-7, 2008.

The Artist Project Show
http://www.theartistproject.com/

Robert Mullenix's art site
http://rwmullenix.blogspot.com/

LEAST: A CHANGE IN ME – Artists Impacted by Relationships with the Least

LEAST: A CHANGE IN ME – Artists Impacted by Relationships with the Least
October 23, 24 and 25, 2008 - West Chicago, IL
See Wheaton Academy's website for more.

Brochure

WHAT: A student festival of art honoring the LEAST
WHY: Relationships with the LEAST have transformed our hearts, minds, and lives.

“What you begin to learn is that giving and serving have little to do with what we have; they are expressions of who we are.”– Kori Hockett (Assistant Principal, Wheaton Academy)

“The LEAST have shown me what it looks like to rely on God completely. And frankly, they do a much better job of relying on God than I do.” – Erica Nellessen (Student, Wheaton College)

“We might possibly need the LEAST more than they need us so that we can learn that quality of life doesn’t come from material possessions – it comes from within and from what we care most about.” – Rae Thompson (Student, Wheaton College)

"Whether it is the financially poor or the poor in spirit, the LEAST have shown me to love at a simpler, in-the-moment kind of way.” – Matt Hockett (Video Teacher, Wheaton Academy)

"We all have seasons of life when we are the LEAST, and it could be a year later when the wounds that we have, which are still healing, are exactly what enable us to see and recognize them in someone else." – Quinn Riebock (Professor, Universidad Tecnica Particular de Loja)

“My faith is more like what Jesus longs it to be, I have found purpose and joy and significance I never had before, and I experienced community with my friends both here in Chicago and across the globe in Zambia that I had always wanted to find." – Chip Huber (Dean of Spiritual Life, Wheaton Academy)

“I have learned how easy and wrong it is to stick people in a box.” – Tom O’Connell (Student, Northwestern University)

"Interacting with the LEAST in Africa, I realized that all of our lives are connected. We need each other." – Mark Fernandes (Student, Wheaton Academy)

“I was reminded that regardless of distance, I share in the support and the caring of this Zambian community through prayer.” – Aimee Daniels (English Teacher, Wheaton Academy)

“The kingdom of God shows up in the weirdest places, amongst the people that seem least likely to inherit anything. And yet there it is, exploding through basketball sneakers and worn down jeans.” – Ryan Souders (Assistant General Manager, Cleveland City Stars)

“When working with the homeless, they forced me to listen, not just hear. They broke my heart and mended my heart.” – Josh Burick (History Teacher, Wheaton Academy)

“I see how the LEAST give the little they have to provide for my needs, knowing full well that I, more then they, am often the LEAST.” – Caroline Helmke (Student, Taylor University)

“Even though I was able to give her a few material things, she gave me a gift that could not have been bought – the joy that comes from having hope.” – David Petersons (Student, Houghton College)

“I stood there holding a little boy with a head enlarged and deformed; he had hydrocephalus. And through that moment, my soul would not stop thirsting to know the healing power of God's mighty hand.” – Susanna Frusti (Student, Bethel College)

“Working with a woman with Lou Gehrig’s disease at a nursing home, I saw greatness in the LEAST. All accomplishments and titles, riches and fame, forgotten…. but the lives she touched remained…and that made her great.” – Rachel Proch (Nursing Student)

“Those that the world has so tragically labeled “the LEAST” ironically have some of the most valuable and needed perspectives to make this world whole.” – Lauren Tomasik (Student, Wheaton College)

HOW: Step into this process.

Consider Micah 6:8.

“And what does the LORD require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Reflect on your relationships and community experience with the LEAST.

Respond to one of the following questions:

• How have the LEAST taught you to act justly in our world?
• How have you been impacted by the love and mercy you have received from the LEAST?
• How have the LEAST moved you to a life of humility?
• How has your view of God changed through time spent with the LEAST?
  

Create a piece of art that honors the LEAST:

• Theatre – one act, monologue
• Photography – one or a series of photographs
• Dance – choreographed narrative piece or otherwise
• Video – short film, public service announcement, music video, mini-documentary
• Visual Arts – painting, graphic design piece, drawing, sculpture,
• Music – instrumental, vocal
• Writing – poetry, short story, essay
• Other – art forms not mentioned above

WHEN: Submitted pieces must be received by October 6th, 2008

Festival will take place on October 23rd, 24th and 25th, 2008

For more information about the Wheaton Academy community response to poverty and AIDS, visit http://www.projectleast.org/

Art Education for the Non-Artist: review: The Penguin Dictionary of Art And Artists: Seventh Edition (Dictionary, Penguin) (Paperback)

"The Penguin Dictionary of Art And Artists: Seventh Edition (Dictionary, Penguin) (Paperback): Art Education for the Non-Artist

I am a writer, not an artist, and thoroughly appreciate "The Penguin Dictionary of Art And Artists" by Peter and Linda Murray.

Though a dictionary, I am using it as a primer. While I am aware of major movements, schools and the artists, and, of course, the most major of works, there is so much I missed that I am reading now. Getting deeper into Picasso, Dali and Van Gogh is a must, as is learning about Dada (I am glad that never stuck).

As I read other materials in my attempt to acquire and bone up in all the arts (music, literature and the visual arts), this is becoming a strong tool for cross-referencing periods in artistic development, especially from a Western hemisphere perspective.

Each entry is encyclopedic, not like a dictionary. There are no etymologies or pronunciation help, just definitions.

What pleases me most is that I understand what I am reading. Lacking the rich artistic vocabulary is no problem. Everything is explained intelligently, simply but not superficially.

I fully recommend "The Penguin Dictionary of Art And Artists" by Peter and Linda Murray.

Anthony Trendl
http://anthonytrendl.blogspot.com/

Pablo Picasso Said That

The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place; from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web.
-Pablo Picasso

Picasso holds the emotion of an artist high. What about faith?

Must Art Have a Message?

Must art have a message? Pick your medium. Name the art, any art, any art in the deck.

About that -- only those readers playing with a full-deck can answer this one. No replacing two Jacks with Jokers.

What about it? Can art be messageless? If so, does it become, by the definition of the word, meaningless?

Unrelated, I'm jamming to online radio, WYCE, "Independent Community Radio: WYCE is an independent, community radio station serving the communities of Grand Rapids and West Michigan with its on-air FM programming at 88.1 Mhz, and reaching out to the world through online streaming on the Internet."

Marc Chagall Said That

Will God or someone else give me the strength to breathe the breath of prayer and mourning into my paintings, the breath of prayer for redemption and resurrection?
--Marc Chagall

The answer, I say, only God can give that strength. What do you say?