Religious Art
Tonight, I picked my favorite religious paintings for the purpose of building a screen saver that I liked. So, here's the thing: I could add more later, but here are my current favorites.
(Simon Dewey) I really like this picture of Christ because He looks protective and contemplative.
(Simon Dewey) I guess I'm the type of person who looks pictures of the things we don't usually picture. And usually, we show pictures of Christ talking to Mary Magdalene and such. But I like this picture of Him emerging from the tomb because it takes the Resurrection to an event rather than a before and after. I think too often we think of it as "He was dead, then He was alive," and skip the part in between.
(okay, so I really like Simon Dewey) I like Joseph's paternal stance in this picture mostly. I think too often we think of Joseph as a "the guy" in the story. Joseph must have been a pretty awesome man for several reasons: 1) God trusted him as the surrogate father of His own son. I don't think that He would let anyone do that. And He did a good job of it. Christ was taught just like the rest of us. And Joseph (and Mary) taught Him well. Kudos to Joseph. 2) His trust and benevolence to Mary. Even when he thought that Mary had betrayed him, he was going to go out of his way to be as delicate and kind about it as possible. He didn't want to hurt her. And then, when the angel came to him and explained it, he accepted that and he believed that. I'm sure that there were members of his family saying, "Are you nuts? Dump the woman!" But he had the faith to just endure that with "Don't worry. It's covered."
(Greg Olsen) I know everyone always looks at the kid that He's reaching for. I think everyone needs to take a moment and just look at the one in His arms. Christ is there to help us when we slip, but is He going to drop the one in His arms to help the one on the rocks? I don't think so. He's always carrying us and will continue to carry us, even while rescuing others.
(Greg Olsen) Classic. And we get the picture. No commentary needed
(Liz Lemon Swindle) So, once again, I like the moments that we don't think about. John and Peter did not walk casually or as soon as they could to see Christ's miracle. They ran. And with a lot of faith intertwined with hope that Christ would be there when they got there. But remember, hope is not based in doubt, but in expectation.
(Liz Lemon Swindle) I love pictures that demonstrate the love that Joseph Smith had for his wife (and family). They had such a beautiful and sweet relationship.
(Carl Bloch) Since the Carl Bloch exhibit is at BYU, I've been seeing a lot of Carl Bloch that I've never seen before. And consequently, some of my favorite religious paintings are emerging. I blew this one up a little bit, because it was small and hard to see. It's Jairus' daughter. What I like about this one is the expectation. Christ has not performed the miracle yet. It's the moment before. Kind of Michelangelo in that regard. The energy before the action. If you can see in the upper right corner, Christ is entering the room, bringing the light with Him.
(Carl Bloch) Okay, another Carl Bloch I had not previously seen. Regardless of the anachronism of this picture, I love it. As some of you may know, I sometimes feel like we are a little squeamish in the LDS religion about dwelling too long on the pain of the atonement. And yes, I agree that the beauty of the resurrection is what we focus on (not that He died, but that He lives), but I find it important to recognize Christ's pain and to ponder it. That's what the Sacrament's for after all. And Christ's expression in this picture is as if He's looking at me and saying, "You have caused this to be necessary, and you should feel remorse. But you don't need to despair for it, because I will take care of it. I will do this for you."
(Carl Bloch) My third new-favorite Carl Bloch painting. This is a bad picture, couldn't find a digital copy of the good one. But I love this one. And there's a second version that Carl Bloch painted where the angel is on the other side of Him, which is more common, but I like this one best. In real life, this painting is HUGE. So, you can't see the facial expressions very well in a small version, but that's what's heart-melting about it. The pure agony in Christ's face is indescribable, and the look on the angel's face says, "I know that it hurts. I'm going to stay with you."
(Simon Dewey) Here's a very Mormon concept: This painting doesn't focus on Christ's miracle as much as her effort for it to be achieved. And I think that that is a very important aspect that doesn't get depicted much. So that's why I like this one so much.
(Simon Dewey) Christ's personal relationship with the Father is so real in this painting. That's why I like it so much.
And those, my friends, are my favorite religious paintings. Other thoughts?
(Simon Dewey) I really like this picture of Christ because He looks protective and contemplative.
(Simon Dewey) I guess I'm the type of person who looks pictures of the things we don't usually picture. And usually, we show pictures of Christ talking to Mary Magdalene and such. But I like this picture of Him emerging from the tomb because it takes the Resurrection to an event rather than a before and after. I think too often we think of it as "He was dead, then He was alive," and skip the part in between.
(okay, so I really like Simon Dewey) I like Joseph's paternal stance in this picture mostly. I think too often we think of Joseph as a "the guy" in the story. Joseph must have been a pretty awesome man for several reasons: 1) God trusted him as the surrogate father of His own son. I don't think that He would let anyone do that. And He did a good job of it. Christ was taught just like the rest of us. And Joseph (and Mary) taught Him well. Kudos to Joseph. 2) His trust and benevolence to Mary. Even when he thought that Mary had betrayed him, he was going to go out of his way to be as delicate and kind about it as possible. He didn't want to hurt her. And then, when the angel came to him and explained it, he accepted that and he believed that. I'm sure that there were members of his family saying, "Are you nuts? Dump the woman!" But he had the faith to just endure that with "Don't worry. It's covered."
(Greg Olsen) I know everyone always looks at the kid that He's reaching for. I think everyone needs to take a moment and just look at the one in His arms. Christ is there to help us when we slip, but is He going to drop the one in His arms to help the one on the rocks? I don't think so. He's always carrying us and will continue to carry us, even while rescuing others.
(Greg Olsen) Classic. And we get the picture. No commentary needed
(Liz Lemon Swindle) So, once again, I like the moments that we don't think about. John and Peter did not walk casually or as soon as they could to see Christ's miracle. They ran. And with a lot of faith intertwined with hope that Christ would be there when they got there. But remember, hope is not based in doubt, but in expectation. 
(Liz Lemon Swindle) I love pictures that demonstrate the love that Joseph Smith had for his wife (and family). They had such a beautiful and sweet relationship.
(Carl Bloch) Since the Carl Bloch exhibit is at BYU, I've been seeing a lot of Carl Bloch that I've never seen before. And consequently, some of my favorite religious paintings are emerging. I blew this one up a little bit, because it was small and hard to see. It's Jairus' daughter. What I like about this one is the expectation. Christ has not performed the miracle yet. It's the moment before. Kind of Michelangelo in that regard. The energy before the action. If you can see in the upper right corner, Christ is entering the room, bringing the light with Him.
(Carl Bloch) Okay, another Carl Bloch I had not previously seen. Regardless of the anachronism of this picture, I love it. As some of you may know, I sometimes feel like we are a little squeamish in the LDS religion about dwelling too long on the pain of the atonement. And yes, I agree that the beauty of the resurrection is what we focus on (not that He died, but that He lives), but I find it important to recognize Christ's pain and to ponder it. That's what the Sacrament's for after all. And Christ's expression in this picture is as if He's looking at me and saying, "You have caused this to be necessary, and you should feel remorse. But you don't need to despair for it, because I will take care of it. I will do this for you."
(Carl Bloch) My third new-favorite Carl Bloch painting. This is a bad picture, couldn't find a digital copy of the good one. But I love this one. And there's a second version that Carl Bloch painted where the angel is on the other side of Him, which is more common, but I like this one best. In real life, this painting is HUGE. So, you can't see the facial expressions very well in a small version, but that's what's heart-melting about it. The pure agony in Christ's face is indescribable, and the look on the angel's face says, "I know that it hurts. I'm going to stay with you."
(Simon Dewey) Here's a very Mormon concept: This painting doesn't focus on Christ's miracle as much as her effort for it to be achieved. And I think that that is a very important aspect that doesn't get depicted much. So that's why I like this one so much.
(Simon Dewey) Christ's personal relationship with the Father is so real in this painting. That's why I like it so much.
And those, my friends, are my favorite religious paintings. Other thoughts?
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