Wise-Hearted Ones: Building A Purposeful World Through Art with Elise Edwards
A couple of years ago, my family decided to redo our living room. It didn’t really feel like a living space. With limited seating and no focal point, it wasn’t a place for us to gather. But then we added a second sofa facing the other one, and all of the sudden, we created a sitting room. With just a small change, people now gather in this room. By adding this simple focal point, we created a structure which invites us to gather and hang out together. The design of the room changed how we function as a family.
I believe in the same way, that is what God was doing with the Tabernacle.
In the Wise-Hearted Ones podcast series, we’ve been exploring lessons we can learn from Exodus. I’ve really enjoyed taking a look at this hidden story in the Old Testament where God instructs His people in how to construct the Tabernacle. God has shown us so much about our calling as artists and makers.
In these 11 chapters in Exodus, God is designing a way for His people to live in happiness and wholeness with Him. And He uses intricate beauty to do it. The ornateness of the Tabernacle reflected God’s character. It represented the power, the ability, and the faithfulness of the God they served. And it also told their story and their place in God’s plan.
As we see with my living room, the design and aesthetics of a space shape us. What surrounds us and how we curate our lives are ultimately what shapes us. This is how God sees the function of design.
Art Matters to God
God didn’t have to give us this beautiful world that we live in. And He didn’t have to make the Tabernacle an ornately beautiful, ritually performative space. But He did.
This brings up a bigger conversation about if making art even matters. What is the point of art? Is it more than something nice or fun or decorative?
My friend and Baylor University Professor Dr. Elise Edwards helped me think through this idea that art matters deeply to God. She says that art transforms us. It allows us to access certain kinds of skills that we can’t get to through linear thinking. The arts are essential, and they’re a part of God’s design for what it means to be human.
As God gives the Israelites directives on how to intricately design the Tabernacle, He called artisans to use their God-given skills to create a purposeful space. Things could happen now that did not before the Tabernacle was constructed. God acts as an incredible designer to build a structure for His people in the middle of the desert. This art and design have a purpose.
Art Shapes Culture
The media and culture we’re surrounded by shapes our view of the world and those we encounter. These things subtly mold our sense of reality, morality, and our view of God.
Still I find so many artists who feel guilty for doing this work. They ask, “How can I justify making art when there are so many important things I could be doing?”
But I believe that when we start to understand the impact of created things, the arts and culture become important. When you add into that the consideration of what happens if Christians don’t create, it becomes even more stark. What if nothing is created from a “wise-hearted” place? What if there are no priestly and prophetic prayers offered up in the shape of physical objects, experiences, sounds, and expressions?
Artists of faith must approach the work in a self-reflective manner. Just like food sustains our bodies, art feeds people’s souls. That must be honored.
Art is important because:
It helps us to flourish, not just to survive.
Art bridges the gap between humanity and important social concerns.
As Christians, this is a worthy and meaningful responsibility. Once we acknowledge that art has the capacity to change culture and lives, we have to think about how to approach it knowing that what we create affects people’s souls.
Art matters. Aesthetics matters. God showed us this as He tasked the Israelites to masterfully create a structure with so much purpose and so much beauty.
What if the intention that God has for art and design in the Tabernacle is also a part of your calling as an artist?
Prof. Edwards and Lisa dive further into how art deeply matters in Ep. 3 of “The Wise-Hearted Ones” series. You can listen here: Building A Purposeful World Through Art with Elise Edwards
Prof. Elise Edwards is a Christian ethicist whose interdisciplinary research draws upon theology, ethics, architectural theory, and urban studies to develop theological, ethical perspectives on civic engagement, cultural and artistic expression, and justice. Get a copy of her new book, Architecture, Theology, and Ethics: Making Architectural Design More Just.
Be.Make.Do. is a soul|makers podcast where we talk about what it takes to pursue your calling as a culture maker with spiritual wholeness and creative freedom. Host Lisa Smith shares her unique perspective gained from over 20 years of mentoring and ministering to artists.
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