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Musician Claire Holley
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FeaturesArtist of the Month: Claire Holley
Click here for more. Read Claire Holley's The Wisdom of Goodnight Moon: On Making a Record, As the Mother of a Two-Year Old here. Image Nominated for UTNE Independent Press Award
To go to the 2009 Independent Press Awards site, complete with all the nominees, click here. A Syllable of Water: Twenty Writers of Faith Reflect on Their Art, edited by Emilie Griffin
Click here to buy the book. Kings on NBC
Kings has moved to Saturday nights at 8 p.m. Catch up with full episodes online. Images of Faith, edited by Sandra Bowden
To purchase Images of Faith, click here. Gallery Watch Makoto Fujimura: Olana Message Board Call for Submissions: LiturgicalCredo LiturgicalCredo, a member of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, is changing its mission. Beginning in June, the online literary journal will be devoted to contemporary stories of faith and doubt in the forms of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. We seek expressions of hard-won faith as well as doubts that won't go away. We do not want simplistic belief or mere skepticism. Instead, we look for inward struggles that are lived within contemporary experiences, whether extraordinary or mundane. T.S. Eliot once wrote, "The majority of mankind is lazy-minded, incurious, absorbed in vanities, and tepid in emotion, and is therefore incapable of either much doubt or much faith." But we believe that literary artists in our time have much doubt and much faith. Our desire is to provide a place for their work. Submit to Colin Foote Burch at colin@liturgicalcredo.com.Weekend Symposium with the New York C.S. Lewis Society From August 7-9, 2009, The Immaculate Conception Center in Douglaston, New York (near LaGuardia and an hour from Manhattan) will proudly host All Things Considered to commemorate the society’s 40th anniversary. Speakers include author Dr. James Como, Fordham's Rev. Joseph Koterski, S.J., Wheaton's Dr. Christopher Mitchell, and Ave Maria University's Joseph Pearce. Pricing varies from single-day event options ($40-75) to three-day full room and board accommodations ($325). Deposits are due June 1 with balance due July 15. For more information, please email Csarrocco@aol.com or visit the New York C.S. Lewis Society's website here.Call to Artists SPAC Art Gallery at Seattle Pacific University is putting out a call to artists for a show October 1-31, 2009 entitled Self Absorbed. The show theme is self-portraiture. Work can be in any medium. For more information, send a self addressed envelope to Cheri Wilke, Art Department, Seattle Pacific University, 3307 Ave W Seattle WA 98119 or email cheri@spu.edu. Deadline for submissions: May 15, 2009.ImageNews — The Scoop on Our Programs Image Readings: Bret Lott
Sixth Annual Denise Levertov Award Goes to Eugene Peterson
For directions to University Presbyterian Church, click here. For more information about the event, click here. The 2009 Florence Seminar Subscribe to Image in Print and Get More Art, Fiction, Poetry, Essays, Interviews, and Every Good Thing If you like reading about great new art and writing inspired by faith in ImageUpdate, and you're ready to get down to reading and seeing the stuff itself, it's time to subscribe to Image. Each quarter our editors comb the world of art and letters to bring you our favorite new work—work that respects transcendent mystery as well as the gritty truth of the material world that bears the divine imprint. A one-year subscription gets you four beautifully produced issues delivered right to your door. Ninety percent of the journal's content is not available on our website, but only through what we call "the sacrament of print." Click here to get the magazine Terry Tempest Williams calls "evocative and inspiring" and Bret Lott calls "the most meaningful literary journal being produced today." ImageUpdatePublisher: Gregory WolfeManaging Editor: Beth Bevis Layout: Anna Johnson Contributors: Mary Kenagy Mitchell, Julie Mullins, Beth Bevis, Anna Johnson, and Gregory Wolfe ImageUpdate is the biweekly e-mail newsletter from Image, a quarterly print journal that explores the relationship between Judeo-Christian faith and art through contemporary fiction, poetry, painting, sculpture, architecture, film, music, and dance. Each issue also features interviews, memoirs, essays, and reviews. ImageUpdate brings you news about books, CDs, organizations, websites, conferences, exhibitions, and tours—all of which inhabit the intersection between faith and imagination. ImageUpdate will also notify you whenever a new issue of Image is printed, an Image event is upcoming, or new content is posted to our website. Copyright © 2009 Center for Religious Humanism. All rights reserved. |
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Claire Holley writes songs that are literary, playful, meditative, and earthy. A native of Mississippi, she owes much to the southern tradition of storytelling, and just as much to the southern tradition of charm, which is to say of knowing how much is too much and how much is enough, of finding just the right blend of mystery and brass, seductiveness and self-deprecation. With spare, delicate arrangements and a frank, lovely, and versatile sound, she sings deceptively simple songs about love, motherhood, and family life. Hers is a value for the ordinary pleasures as well as the profound questions. Both as a lyricist and a singer, Holley is an exemplar of the value of not overdoing it. Though gifted with a mighty voice, she uses it with restraint and without affectation, and her lyrics seem so effortless at first that you can almost miss their weight. Many of her original songs sound like they might be traditionals, with the stripped-down diction of the oldest American music and the beauty of Shaker furniture, but all bear Holley’s distinct stamp: a spareness that is at times eerie, at times sweet, always full of grace.
We've said it before: there's nothing better than working hard to do a job well... except, perhaps, when your efforts get recognized. That's just happened to us: the super cool digest magazine for the culturally aware, Utne Reader, has nominated Image for the 
The contributors to A Syllable of Water are some of the biggest names in the world of Christian writing, and in this volume they offer their collective wisdom on that inexhaustible and ever-popular subject: how writers write. The beauty of their approach is how multifaceted it is. As a whole, the collection speaks to many aspects of the writing process, from initial inspiration to the hard work of revision (and beyond), all of it informed by a shared Christian vision—the contributors are members of the Chrysostom Society, a group of writers interested in the intersection of faith and writing. At times the essays take the form of basic advice that will be helpful for beginning writers. But more often, reading these pieces feels like being offered a seat and a cup of coffee in the writer’s office: some of the best words of wisdom they offer aren’t writing tips at all, but observations about life. Luci Shaw talks about journal-keeping and the deliberate practice of paying attention; Scott Cairns explores the “word-attending” art of poetry. Some of the contributors place their writing in the broader context of community: Eugene Peterson, for example, recalls the translational exercise of interpreting the Bible for his congregation. If you’re looking for a simple how-to book on writing, this probably isn’t your book. But there is plenty of sound advice to be found: on getting started, doing research, revision, dealing with writers’ block—you name it. The book also tackles heftier craft issues: Erin McGraw writes about the work of image and metaphor in short stories, Virginia Stem Owens explores memoir and the narrative impulse, Jeanne Murray Walker discusses the process of writing characters for the stage, and more. Adding another practical element to the book, each author provides a list of suggested further reading, which is a great glimpse into what shaped these writers and what is giving them inspiration now.
Image blogger Bradford Winters is supervising producer of Kings, the new NBC series inspired by the story of King David. Set in the kingdom of Gilboa, which looks a lot like modern day America, Kings draws on biblical themes of divine appointment and providence, and carefully walks the line between God’s love and wrath; this God isn't a toothless and vaguely magical benefactor in the sky, but he isn't a merciless warmonger either. The look of the show, unafraid of color and warmth but not overripe, is refreshing amid scores of gritty one-tone city dramas. Viewers might find the premise of a modern monarchy instated by God and signified by a butterfly flag a little off-putting at first, but the complexities of the characters are the focus. King Silas (the inimitable Ian McShane) is commanding and unpredictable, but underneath his ferocity lies a man capable of deep devotion to his family. His no-less imperious queen (Susanna Thompson) serves as the guardian of art and beauty and culture. "This is why we end wars," she reminds the king’s council as she drags her family to the opera and ballet. But in an inadvertent betrayal of the thing itself, she turns art and culture into her own battlefield and forces her family to play out little dramas on the national stage, the ultimate "performance" intended to inspire the people to believe in a future without war. Naturally, the royal family is crumbling from the inside under the weight of their failings, but the sweet and self-deprecating David (Chris Egan) delivers a breath of new life as he serves at the king's command. We’re hopeful that the series will continue to explore the disappointing and sometimes sordid history of David's adult life and grapple with how, even after all that, he was "a man after God's own heart." And the first few episodes, rife with sacrifices and no-win decisions, are a good indication that the writers of this series value the tragedies of Israel's kings as well as the glories.
Admit it: at some point in your life, you’ve made fun of the sort of PowerPoint slide shows used during a worship service. Right? Even when the words to songs or scripture are fabulous and meaningful, the visuals can often seem...well, bland or sentimental or goofy. And yet the visuals we project before gatherings of the faithful are not merely secondary things: they teach and communicate every bit as much as the words. Over the last few decades there have been many changes in Christian worship, including a widespread hunger for more meaningful visual art in the sanctuary. But the visual education of the church takes time and patience and effort; it is an ongoing project. Enter our friends at Christians in the Visual Arts. With funding from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, CIVA has put together a CD chock full of carefully-selected works of art. Entitled Images of Faith, the disk is a treasure trove of powerful, significant Christian art—all by contemporary artists, individuals who are creating within the current cultural circumstance. After a short installation process, the main menu of the program allows you several points of entry. There are two helpful essays: “From Looking to Seeing” by art historian James Romaine and “Resurrection of the Body” by painter Ed Knippers (the latter dealing with the issue of nudity in art). There is also a bibliography. But the core of the disk is its collection of 100 images. You can explore the contents either through four major themes—“Creation/Creator,” “Fall,” “Redemption/Life of Christ,” “Life of Faith”—or through several dozen more tightly circumscribed categories, from “Angels” to “Worship.” The artists represented include many featured in the pages of Image over the years, including Wayne Forte, Ted Prescott, Erica Grimm-Vance, Joel Sheesley, Tim Lowly, Mako Fujimura, Sandra Bowden, Bruce Herman, and others. There is great diversity in style and approach of the imagery on the disk: not only traditional illustrative art but also more oblique angles, such as abstraction. All images on the disk may be freely used for the purposes of projection (but not printing). Simply put: this is a tremendous resource.
The White Stone Gallery proudly hosts Makoto Fujimura’s newest exhibit, Olana: Psalms of Ascent. Crafted with the ancient Japanese technique and materials of Nihonga, the paintings in this exhibit are devotional imagery made in the last two years. Fujimura describes his latest work as “a personal devotional journey between art and faith,” as well as his homage to Hudson River painters. Makoto Fujimura’s work has appeared in exhibits across the United States and Japan, as well as in the pages of Image. Click 
Bret Lott's fiction explores the beauty and dignity of ordinary things and ordinary people. His characters embody the old-fashioned virtues of modesty, hard work, and staying in it for the long haul. In his nonfiction and public addresses, he exhibits a keen and sometimes wicked sense of humor: he is at once a fervent Christian believer and an irreverent critic of the absurdities of modern culture—both inside the church and out. Bret is this month's featured author on Image Readings.
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Join Image journal and acclaimed writer Eugene Peterson for the 2009 Denise Levertov Award lecture and reading and a celebration of Image's Twentieth Anniversary. Peterson, a contributor to Image and author of the bestselling The Message, will give a reading and commentary called "Intently Haphazard," about how the arts have formed his vocation as a pastor and writer, at University Presbyterian Church on Saturday, May 16, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public and will be followed by a reception and book signing. Peterson is an SPU alumnus and Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia, and founded Christ Our King Presbyterian Church in Bel Air, Maryland, where he pastored for twenty-nine years. He is a pastor and spiritual writer who has written more than thirty books, including A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, The Contemplative Pastor, and Eat This Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading. In his most recent book, Tell It Slant: A Conversation on the Language of Jesus in His Stories and Prayers, Peterson invokes Emily Dickinson's words: "Tell all the truth but tell it slant — / Success in Circuit lies / Too bright for our infirm Delight / The Truth's superb surprise." Throughout his work, Peterson has insisted on the centrality of the imagination to the life of faith. He suggests that God's revelation comes through the ambiguities and nuances of story and lyric poetry—highly charged language that calls on our active participation and response for its full meaning to be grasped. With Dickinson, Peterson believes that "the Truth must dazzle gradually" through language that helps us move past "preconceptions, prejudices, defenses, stereotypes, and fact-dominated literalism" into "the language of...the Other." The Levertov Award is presented annually in the spring to an artist or creative writer whose work exemplifies a serious and sustained engagement with the Judeo-Christian tradition. Past recipients include poets Madeline DeFrees and Franz Wright, nonfiction writers Kathleen Norris and Thomas Lynch, and fiction writer Bret Lott. The event is co-sponsored by the Seattle Pacific University English department, the SPU MFA in Creative Writing, and University Presbyterian Church.
On September 13-20, 2009, Image will gather a small group of inquirers in Florence and Rome to explore the life and achievements of the sculptor, painter, architect, and poet, Michelangelo Buonarroti. In his works we see the dignity of humanity and its fall, the emergence of the individual and the dangers of individualism, and a fierce struggle to harmonize beauty with goodness and truth. Yet for all the conflict and tension in his work, Michelangelo left us with exquisite images of how God's grace can transform human experience. In Image's twentieth anniversary year, we'll return to Italy to explore how Michelangelo's incarnational vision can inform our own efforts to continue bringing about cultural transformation in our time. Our week together in Italy will begin with a couple days in Rome, where we will visit the Vatican and other sites associated with Michelangelo. The remainder of the week will be spent in Florence, where we will visit the great churches and museums featuring the artist and enjoy exquisite meals at restaurants in the city and the surrounding area.
If you're interested, visit the Florence Seminar 
