Showing posts with label Makoto Fujimura. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Makoto Fujimura. Show all posts
On October 26, 2011, I had the wonderful privilege of hearing Makoto Fujimura give a
lecture about his newest project, the Four Holy Gospels Bible, which was
published by Crossway and released in January 2011. It was fascinating to hear
about his technique, Nihonga, which involves painting with pigments made of
prismatic minerals in multiple layers. One of the paintings he spoke of is
titled "Prodigal God", based on the story of the two sons in Luke 15.
The title is based off a book by the same title written by Fujimura's pastor,
Timothy Keller. I read this book over the summer, and it was very challenging. In
speaking of the book and his painting, Fujimura explained that in the days of
Shakespeare, the word prodigal had a good connotation and meant spend-thrift,
or spending everything for a cause. We often label the younger son as prodigal,
but the real prodigal, by the Shakespearean definition, is the Father. Keller
stresses this in his book as well. Both of the sons are wayward in their own
ways. The younger son runs after worldly pleasure. The older son gets caught up
in legalism, and despite both of the sons' mistakes, the father spends all on
them. He runs to meet his youngest, something which was not seen as respectable
for elders to do. For his older son, he leaves the banquet, a great disgrace,
to speak to his son and bring reconciliation. Our Father does this too. He sent
His only son, Jesus, to be disgraced for our sake, which is an incredible
picture of extravagant grace.
Makoto Fujimura leaves the viewer to imagine their own meaning out of his "Prodigal God" painting, but there are several little clues he gives to demonstrate this extraordinary grace. First of all, Fujimura used oyster shell pigments, the only opaque, transparent white pigment, to provide a vision of grace, which provides a stark contrast to the other side of the painting. And speaking of two sides, Fujimura informs his audience that splitting the picture is not recommended in the art world, but he intentionally employed this split to create a problem that humans cannot solve, which illustrates that grace does not equal doing stuff for God, but rather accepting His free gift.
I highly recommend reading Prodigal God (found at this call number in the library: BT378.P8 K25 2008) and meditating on its challenge to be a real prodigal who spends all they have to seek those who are lost in their sin. This is the challenge Fujimura is also trying to convey, and I believe it is crucial to embrace this grace and live it out.
~Allison Beyer
library for a few years now. It was one of the most beautiful messages I have heard and it seemed a lot of people found it to be really encouraging for where they are at and have been feeling. Although his artwork is most definitely fabulous, what touched me the most was the fact that he was able to make the message he shared this morning an art in and of itself.
He spoke on John 11. He focused on verse 11, pointing out that Jesus’ tears in this passage can aid our understanding of the arts and culture. He described three of the people present at the scene including Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. Each of these individuals had very different personalities, mannerisms, desires, thoughts etc. throughout the chapter. Because each of them was so different, the approach that Jesus Christ had to take to reach them individually had to be unique. Fuijimura reminded us that in our suffering and crises Jesus is the ultimate master of helping us uniquely in difficult situations. When life is filled with chaos, we need to be reminded that Jesus wept. He stated that a day will come when our sufferings will not be worth it anymore because we will be reclining with Jesus. Our reaction to this is to be that of love, prioritizing our lives, and truly living in Christ's freedom. Fujimura challenged us to face the world by creating and showing beauty, truth, and goodness. All of this should be done in confidence for God's glory.
Makoto Fujimura’s message displayed such reverence for the Lord, while also pointing out so many aspects of John 11 that I have never noticed. Take some time and check out the passage in light of Fujimura’s thoughts. Also, take some time and stop by the library to check out some of his artwork!
~Christa Joy Ciotta
Library Items by Makoto Fujimura
Makoto Fujimura's website
Image: Fujimura, Makoto. Aijo (Compassionate Love). Digital image. Makoto Fujimua. 1987. Web. 27 Oct. 2011.
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