I see art, design, and creativity in general as tools that can be used to cope with what it means to be vulnerable in the modern world. Touching the vulnerability of others creates space to breathe love and shine light into sensitive places. I spoke with Kathy Howell on her podcast It's All About Evolving about the things that we don't always think about pertaining to creativity.
Messages that are not delivered beautifully fall on deaf ears in our current culture. The world interprets truth through beauty, which places responsibility on creatives. There is a belief that beauty is whimsy, while the truth is absolute and hardline. I am interested in interrogating how we can marry the two. I think that embracing that intersection can (and does) create an incredible amount of influence. As creatives, how can we use our gifting to deliver important messages in a way that is palatable to today’s culture? Beauty can be used as a device to communicate robust messages with love.
At times I contend with my career seeming to be at odds with my faith. I identify as a Christian, and through my journey, I have carved out how I can remain faithful to my convictions as a Christian while stewarding my creative gifts and working hard to achieve the milestones and desires in my heart. Ultimately, art is an expression of worship. Any content I make is with the intention of bringing glory to God. I speak more about this in the episode, so if this topic interests you, I think you will enjoy listening to it. Check out this snippet below:
In this interview, we speak about the Christian church and an unfortunate experience that Kathy had in her local congregation. One of the heart issues that I believe the church struggles with most is judgement. The act of judgment gives us as humans a feeling of superiority. We become prideful that we did not succumb to the sin that another did. We boast of our own righteousness through others' judgment, and it satiates our hunger to feel like we are better than everyone else. Our opinions and uncompassionate words have driven people away from the church with emotional wounds. Ephesians 4:3 calls us to be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit, binding ourselves together in peace. I commend those whose first response is one of love, not judgment, and hope that we can continue to move in that direction as Christ-followers. My heart is to see the church heal the wounds we have caused so that we become better reflectors of the light of God’s love. Our sins have been forgiven through the greatest act of love the world has ever known. The least we can do in return is to stop judging others' mistakes and instead demonstrate love. Hard truths must be delivered in a spirit of gentleness and respect, with a longing for unity. Genuine compassion insists on it.
XO, T.