Art and Prayer. Both are human attempts at transcendence. So art has adorned houses of worship throughout human history. In Western history, the visual arts reflected the faith and practices of Christianity (and Judaism). My own theology teachers spoke of the Medieval Synthesis–the confluence of the Arts and sciences, philosophy and theology throughout much of Western History. Since the Enlightenment, there has been a great deal of fragmentation. Art today is not always representational. Sometimes it aims at deconstructing the world, worldviews, and belief itself. But historically art and prayer were joined. Art sometimes depicting prayer, calling us to prayer, or making visible the interior dimensions of our prayer.
Monsignor Timothy Verdon is the director of the Mount Tabor Centre in Barga, Italy. He directs the Diocesan Office of Sacred Art and Church Cultural Heritage, the Cathedral Foundation Museum, and the Centre for Ecumenism of the Archdiocese of Florence. As a senior cleric in the Roman Catholic Church and a respected art historian, Verdon is well acquainted with both prayer and art. In Art & Prayer: The Beauty of Turning to God, Verdon describes how the arts make visible the nature of prayer. With reference to church fathers, theologians and artists he explores the theme of prayer in Western art. The pieces that Verdon discusses are displayed in full color on beautiful glossy pages.
Most of the art that Verdon profiles is from the Medieval era (from the 6th to the 15th Century). There are a couple of pieces that are older (third century) and one piece is from the modern era (Filippo Rossi’s Magnificat). But this is not a chronological exploration, it is a thematic one. Verdon explores how art helps us enter prayer in everyday life (chapter one), our spaces of prayer (chapter two, which also explores sacred architecture), liturgical prayer (chapter three), prayer of pleading (chapter four), lectio divina (chapter five), contemplative prayer (chapter six) and prayer at the hour of our death (chapter seven)
Verdon weaves theology and art, using various paintings, frescoes, reliefs and altar pieces to illustrate the Catholic tradition’s wisdom on the nature of prayer. Neither art nor prayer are understood through ferocious consumption, but through thoughtful contemplation. This book requires a slow, meditative reading. I found myself flipping back and reading several sections again, I recommend this book for Artists and pray-ers alike. There is lots to digest here–I give it five stars: ★★★★★
Thank you to Paraclete Press for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
thoughts, prayers & songs: 