[Image: Old Man with Turban, Rembrandt]
Eccl. 3:11
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
DISCLAIMER: Please hang with me in this thing... I am no expert on anything I am writing about. I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject.
What is this thing called genius? Why is it that we know it when when we encounter it but we are not really sure why?
After all, it's not exactly the same things as technical excellence though that seems to be an adjunct, perhaps a corollary though not always a pre-requisite.
Musing on the idea it occurred to me that "genius" is the ability to explore and demonstrate the marvellous complexity inherent in a simple subject yet without losing the original integrity. What does all that gobbledy-gook mean? Perhaps its best to illustrate rather than try to nail it down in words.
Rembrandt is a certified genius. But in most of his paintings what we see is an intentional simplicity of subject. Here, it's a painting of a man wearing a turban. But immediately, if we do anything more than give it a passing glance, we see that it is far more than that. There is a "story" in the man's expression. He is solemn, intent upon whatever is occupying his mind, intelligence streams forth in his expression and there is more than a hint of sensitivity. In some manner Rembrandt has captured a glimpse of his soul.
But there is more. The detail in the man's face and turban draw us into the painting. The fibers glisten in the light. The experience of years is captured in the creases that line his face. And all this detail is literally highlighted by the offset light. A broad light on his face would have masked the detail and flattened his expression. The light illuminates the simple subject and what we discover is the wonderful complexity that is there... contained in the subject but "discovered" and made known to us through the "genius" of the artist.
Another illustration: Mozart... another certified genius.
Take a moment... about 4 minutes to be exact... put on a good set of head phones if you have them... close your eyes and listen to one of my favorite works, the second movement of his Piano Concerto #21, Elvira Madigan,;Download 05 Mozart_ Piano Concerto #21 In C, (The first movement is even more illustrative of the point but it is quite long.)
Notice immediately the "simplicity" of the main theme (it's only about 10 or 12 notes strung together) and the simplicity of the secondary bass theme (only three notes) that perfectly interweaves with the main melody. Notice when the piano comes on, that it, in a very disciplined manner, reminds us first of the main theme. But throughout this wonderful work those two themes are simply expanded, elevated up the scale, broken into sub-sets and varied a bit, the progression reversed, then moved into a minor key to give contrast and build tension, and then, as the piece closes, the original subject is again displayed and brought to a satisfying close that leaves the heart at peace and the sense that God is in His heaven and all is ultimately right with the world.
That's genius. In both the painting and the music, a simple subject is explored and the complexity that is inherent in it is displayed and commented upon and brought to the attention of all us mere mortals who benefit from their gift. Gifted musicians can play and render Mozart's work beautifully... but that is not the genius. Expert technicians can copy Rembrandt's painting... but that is not the genius. The "genius" was the insight, the penetration, the recognition of what was there, in combination, and the exploration of it without destroying the original. The man in the turban is always there... the "subject" of Mozart's exposition is always "there".
You know... perhaps that is where the highest expression of the image of God in man is to be recognized. God has made "all things beautiful in its time." What does that mean other than that the fullness of all His works, the complex interweaving that underlies them, comes together into a magnificent higher simplicity that we call "beauty." Man is man but what a wondrous creature he is. And when we bring all the other complex creatures together and the full extent of the heavens and the earth and we realize that it is all, ultimately, simply the "word" of God... His breathed purpose, then we fall down and worship at the sheer perfection of it.
Man, in demonstrating genius, is thinking God's thoughts after Him. He is exploring the simple and revealing and exploiting its complexity and at last, falling down in worship of Him who made it this way and gave us the ability to follow His steps.
Not all of us are Rembrandt as far as the art of portraiture goes. There was only one Mozart. But, and I am convinced of this, we all possess genius. It's not a measure of "smartness"... it's not identical with an elevated IQ, whatever that is. Genius is finding one thing... pondering it... exploring it... and discovering its inherent beauty and unity. Bearing witness is using our genius, as it is distributed to each of us, to show forth the wisdom, power and glory of God.
What a joy it is to know that all things are beautiful... in its time. Now that is true genius.
1 Samuel 12: What Could Be More Reasonable?
Image: Color Textures, 2019, Lancaster Co., Pa
1 Samuel 12:6–7 (NKJV) 6 Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who raised up Moses and Aaron, and who brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore, stand still, that I may reason with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord which He did to you and your fathers:
1 Samuel 12:20–22 (NKJV) 20 Then Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness; yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21 And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing. 22 For the Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people.
On various occasions I review a bunch of my images to cull some to clear up disk space or for some other reason. As I do this I try to rate those the "keepers" and assign them a relative "value" from 1 to 5. At some point I will group the "5's" together, look at each individually and ask myself "Why do I like this one? What is it that makes it stand out from the rest, at least to me." I ask the same type of question to other people when they think one is really special. "What is it about it that makes it special?"
This has lead me to understand that there is much more to producing a good image than just "point and click." Not that I didn't already know this but it is an area where I am constantly growing. Photography, like any good art, is a "rational" activity. A person may pick it up intuitively and just "see" the image they want to record, certainly. But when that happens, even then, when examined it will be seen to conform to some general principles. In other words... there is method... order... intentionality... in the organization of beautiful things.
This is true even when there is apparent chaos at first impression. In the above image there is certainly chaos. But you might notice that I have tried to bring out the "primary colors" to produce internal contrast. Red & Green, Blue & Orange especially. Yellow is present but there is only a small bit of purple/violet. I did not see this when the image was first taken it was only in development that I brought it out, but .... that's photography.
The point of all that rambling was to illustrate that what is beautiful is, necessarily, reasonable. Method, order and intentionality are not opposed to impulsive intuition (which often is mistakenly taken to mean "creativity") but rather are the subjects which an intuitive person recognizes. Some people have to think their way to the final product. Others just "see" it. One is not better than the other and both can err. But, in the final analysis, "come, let us reason together..." is the lens through which that which is beautiful can be comprehended and understood.
I love this chapter in 1 Samuel. It is so full of pathos as old, tired Samuel is striving to establish his people on solid ground so that they may prosper before the Lord. Samuel saw, with divine insight, that a truly beautiful life in this world is not only possible but it is what God desires for His people. It is a life lived in community because beauty, as in the image, requires contrast, diversity, individual contributions to the final product. The idea that a perfect man/woman is like a solitary Greek statue - pristine and faultless - with nothing missing, is a completely pagan idea. God has designed mankind to not be "alone" but rather to live in blessed community with others. The "image of God" that He wants mankind to reflect is a corporate image, filled with many diverse colors and forms and productive in total of that "image" with each individual making a necessary contribution.
Samuel doesn't explicitly lay this out in this chapter but it is implicit in his appeal to Israel. "Stand still so that I may reason with you!" he says. "Come let me show you a beautiful picture. Look in your history! See your fathers, the corporate reality of Israel as it existed then, and look at how God treated you with righteousness and justice. Look at all the great acts that He has done. Let this image fill your mind!"
"Now, think rationally. What does this all mean? What elements comprise this 'picture' and how do they show us 'beauty?' Is it not this: That God has declared, for His own great name's sake, that you are His people? If this is true, is it not clearly reasonable, logical, that He will continue to watch over you and to form you into a people who truly shine more brightly than all the stars in the sky?"
"Form this image in your mind: see yourselves, as a community, serving the LORD with all your heart (vs. 20). Think of how life would flourish if you mutually help each other stay focused, that you restrain each other from going after empty things (vs. 21). Does it not stand to reason that God would so encourage you and strengthen you and preserve you that, in hind sight, all of the difficulties that you may encounter would be seen to make the overall picture even more beautiful?"
"Be reasonable... consider what great things He has done for you. What could be more logical that to fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart." (vs. 24)
What a beautiful picture of God's people is presented to our minds here. The greatest thing about it is that it is not "abstract" art like the image above... rather it is as concrete as our own lives and the fellowship of our congregations. They can be truly beautiful... if we just observe the structures or elements that contribute and lead to beauty.
Posted by Gadfly on October 30, 2019 at 11:28 AM in Art, Christian Apologetics, Church, Commentary, Culture, Movies, etc., Devotional Meditation, Discipleship, Ethics, Personal Photography | Permalink | Comments (0)
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