Christian Art of Candis Kloverstrom Illustrates Salvation

AOA NEWS

COLORADO - Artistic Impact Publishing, the Christian Art of Candis Kloverstrom illustrates her belief faith is a relationship with God that creates eternal hope. She is releasing the publication of her latest artwork, "Salvation." This is an acrylic painting inspired by her recent trip to Israel depicting God's plan of salvation from John 3:16 in the Bible. Her artwork "Salvation" is now available at Artistic Impact Publishing through giclee canvas reproductions. The feature article by Roderick C. Meredith for Tomorrow'sWorld.org states, "Millions do not understand their need for salvation. Sadly, many who believe they are "saved" are not even Christian! Are you learning the truth about salvation-and acting on it? You need to be sure!" Kloverstrom's latest artwork "Salvation" is about John 3:16-17 quoting Jesus on salvation, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." [link]

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Ohio Baptist Church Buys Former Theater as New Home

USA TODAY

OHIO — A defunct dinner theater that entertained northeast Ohio audiences for more than 30 years will soon be full again, this time with churchgoers. The former Carousel Dinner Theatre in Akron has been sold to a suburban church that tried unsuccessfully to acquire the property at auction nearly a year ago. An electrical contractor that submitted the winning bid ultimately decided it didn't want to undertake the extensive renovations necessary to transform the building for its purposes, the Akron Beacon Journal reported. The pastor of Community Baptist Temple of Lakemore said he believed God had a hand in the turnabout. "I still felt that was our building and that we were supposed to be there," the Rev. Mark O'Donnell said. "I didn't know how it was going to happen, but we were very confident that with the Lord nothing was impossible." The 31,000-square-foot building will allow the church to seat twice as many people as it does at its current location. [link]

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RELIGIOUS ART | TALK OF WEEK

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ARTS new Islamic Art Gallery (above) is the A&O Talk of the Week as the public awaits the grand opening Tuesday, November 1st in New York City. This week's A&O trinity of questions are:

1. Will the MET's new galleries make a difference in understanding the Islamic faith? (Comment)
2. Name one thing you've learned about the Hindu faith's "Festival of Lights" (Diwali)? (Comment)
3. When will the winning artwork for the 4th annual A&O Prize be announced? November 1, 2011

Listed below are the other news stories of the past week from the world of religious art. The stories are grouped by the five largest faith traditions, with an additional category for other/interfaith.

BUDDHIST ART:

• Buddhist Monks Create Healing Art, Displayed in Virginia College (ABC 13)
• Art from Zen Masters and More, at Florida's Morikami Museum (Palm Beach Post)

HINDU ART:

• Diwali 2011: 5 Things to Know about the Indian "Festival of Lights" (International Business Times)
• Student's Indian-Style Artwork to Celebrate Diwalian Festival (Daily Echo)

ISLAMIC ART:

• 19th Century Painting of Delhi's Mosque under Hammer (The Hindu)
• 3-day International Seminar on Islamic Art Planned in India (ZEE News)
• NYC's Metropolitan Museum's New Islamic Art Galleries to Open (Fox NY)
• Iran's Ayatollah: Promoting Spirituality as the Goal of Art (Fars News Agency)
• Artist Farshchian and Iran's Culturati Rankled By MET's Ranking of Arab Countries (Tehran Times)
• PHOTO BLOG: New galleries for Islamic Art Treasures at the MET (MSNBC)
• Morgan Library Exhibit: A Window Into Islamic Art (Wall Street Journal)
• At the Met, a New Vision for Islam in Hostile Times (The New York Times)

JUDAICA FINE ART:

• Miami Congregation's Art Gallery Exhibit Explores Sukkot (Florida Jewish Journal)
• Russian Tall Ship Skips U.S. Port in Snub Linked to Jewish Case (Moscow Times)
• Book Review: A Woman's Tale of Faith & Art in Jerusalem 1911 (Jewish Journal)

CHRISTIAN ART:

• Holy Monstrance (Relic) from New Orleans to be Auctioned in NYC on Nov. 16 (The Times-Picayune)
• Cleveland Art Exhibit About Religious Women (Fox TV)
• NY Man's Possible Michelangelo on Display in Rome (Associated Press)
• Nazi Stolen St John Sculpture Returned to Jewish Heirs by German Museum (Bloomberg Business Week)
• Video: Kate Askegaard's "Pieta" in Millions of Dots (AOA News)
• Renowned Artists to Create Stations of the Cross for Lentfest 2012 (Scottish Catholic Observer)
• Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine's "A Missionary Position" Postponed (AOA News)
• Fernando Botero returns to NYC with a Passion for Christ (AOA News)

RELATED ARTS:

• A&O Week Ahead | Indianapolis (AOA News)
• Colorful Coffins and Funerals to Die For (Wall Street Journal)
• Both Sides Now: The Blake Prize for Religious Art (ABC National Radio)
• New US Postage Stamps set for the Holidays (Associated Press)
• Hollywood's Lucy Liu Takes Her Artwork in London (The Guardian)
• Video: 360° 3D Mapping Projection of Paola Epifani (YouTube)
• Video: Occupy London - St Paul's Protest 15 October (Occupy LSX)

Get your daily dose of Alpha Omega Arts on Facebook and/or Twitter, or catch-up with the A&O team at using the A&O Week Ahead in Indianapolis: connecting artists, faiths and communities through art.

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2011 A&O ANNUAL REPORT

A MESSAGE FROM THE CEO & THE BOARD CHAIR

As the Board of Directors of Alpha & Omega Project for Contemporary Religious Arts gathered this past weekend in Indianapolis this for its annual meeting, it did so celebrating its first anniversary as an independent 501(C)3 charitable trust. It is in the role as trustees that we share with you our observations of the significant progress made by this organization during the past year. In 2008, a group of visionaries saw the potential of the visual arts to provide a little tested vehicle for interfaith understanding. These visionaries had no road-map to follow -- but they had faith that could set the groundwork for broad community ownership.

A year ago this month at the offices of Blackburn Architects, a set of initial goals were adopted at the first meeting of a new independently operated nonprofit, and through the generosity of affiliates, donors, and advisors such as yourself has resulted in the launch of the first A&O gallery show on November 6th. We've expanded our art prize outreach and produced monthly educational programs throughout the entire year. As this new independently operated A&O has gained solid footing, we've never looked back, except to say thank you to all our supporters. As the project continues to emerge as a cultural presence, the following are a few of the achievements of the past year:

• A&O received IRS approval to operate as an independently operated tax-deductible 501(C)3 educational foundation with an advisory board of national religious & cultural leaders.
• A&O moved from informal gatherings at a variety of artistic & religious locations to its permanent home at the Indiana Interchurch Center in Indianapolis.
• A&O began with no "seed-funding" and an untried "concept," but now has regular financial support and program partners, including the beginning of an advertising revenue stream from the original online blog.
• A&O established its first young artist scholarship of $750 based in part on a gift from a supporter in Miami, Florida, and this will awarded to the winners of a high school art contest opening on November 6 at the new Indiana Interchurch Center gallery.
• A&O affirmed that the A&O Prize for Contemporary Religious Art is the projects primary program, and certified the vote for the winning entry which will be announced, as is customary on November 1st.

Together these original visionaries and those who have joined the journey since inception must be congratulated for continuing to support the A&O Prize for Contemporary Religious Art. The programs needed to keep this community of Believers of many faiths connected and invested in cross-cultural understanding through the visual arts will continue long into the future because of that support.

Respectfully,
PASTOR JACKIE JACKSON, board chair
& ERNEST O. BRITTON, project director & CEO

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Fernando Botero Returns to NYC with Passion of Christ

AOA NEWS

Entombment of Christ (2010) oil on canvas, 59 x 79 7/8 inches

NEW YORK - On Thursday, NYC's Marlborough Gallery opened the first showing of a new body of work by the world renowned Colombian artist, Fernando Botero. The exhibition, entitled Via Crucis, is based on scenes from the passion of Christ. Botero's most recent American showing was this past Spring at the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio, but this is Botero’s first NYC exhibition since 2006. The showing of Via Crucis (Latin for The Way of the Cross) consists of twenty-seven oils on canvas of various sizes and approximately thirty-four drawings in mixed media on paper. The Malborough Gallery is located at 40 West 57th street and the Via Crucis show runs through December 3, 2011.

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Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine's "A Missionary Position" Postponed

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

Photo courtesy of the artist

CALIFORNIA - The multimedia solo production, A Missionary Position by Ugandan American artist Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine planned for this November has been postponed to an undetermined date in 2012 at LA's RedCat (Roy & Edna Disney Calarts Theater). Entitled A Missionary Position, this searing satirical work is a response to the rampant homophobia now gripping Uganda —shown most notoriously by the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill that would make certain homosexual acts punishable by death. Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine is a noted Los Angeles actor and theater artist who portrays real-life and fictional characters, among them figures from the East African nation’s Anglican (Episcopalian) establishment; the political sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill; and Ugandan citizens whose very lives hang in the balance.

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Both Sides Now: The Blake Prize for Religious Art

ABC NATIONAL RADIO: THE SPIRIT OF THINGS
By Rachael Kohn

AUSTRALIA - Australia's most generous prize for religious art is celebrating its 60th year. The Blake Prize is named after the 18th century poet, painter and mystic, William Blake, who challenged the Church of England, and rejected its sexual mores. It's a matter of debate just what part of Blake's legacy should be in the foreground; his reverent use of mythic and mystical imagery, or his dissenting views on sexuality and church power. In our day the debate has morphed into whether the Blake Prize should reflect broadly humanistic values and personal spiritualities or directly engage living religious traditions. Today my guests roughly represent the two sides of the debate, with Rod Pattenden, a Uniting Church minister who is the Chair of the Blake Prize, and the Sydney Morning Herald art critic John McDonald. [Link]

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At the Met, a New Vision for Islam in Hostile Times

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By Robert Worth

NEW YORK - Over the past decade, many Americans have based their thoughts and feelings about Islam in large part on a single place: the blasted patch of ground where the World Trade Center once stood. But a rival space has slowly and silently taken shape over those same years, about six miles to the north. It is a vast, palacelike suite of rooms on the second floor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where some of the world’s most precious Islamic artifacts sit sequestered behind locked doors. There is far more at stake here than the overhaul of a permanent collection at the Met, itself a once-in-a-generation event. The museum’s directors are acutely aware that their collection will be unveiled at a time when Islam is a more inflammable subject than ever. That is no small part of what makes Haidar so nervous as she prepares for opening day. It is also one reason the galleries — closed since 2003 — spent so long in the dark. [link]

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19th Century Painting of Delhi’s Mosque under Hammer

THE HINDU

"Pearl Mosque at Delhi," by Russian artist Vasili Vasilievich Vereshchagin

INDIA - A giant painting of New Delhi’s Moti masjid, the most accomplished work from Russian artist Vasili Vasilievich Vereshchagin’s famed Indian series, will be the highlight of a Sotheby’s auction here next month and is expected to fetch USD 5 million. The sale of important Russian art on November 1 will see the monumental work — measuring approximately 13 by 16 feet — on offer from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, along with seven works. Vereshchagin, considered one of the most famous of Russian painters, embarked on a two-year journey to India in 1874 with his wife. His Indian series features numerous depictions of architectural monuments, all of which he realistically captured with painstaking attention to detail. [link]

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Student's Indian-Style Artwork to Celebrate Diwalian Festival

DAILY ECHO
By Stephen Fry

Student sitting next to Hindu Festival artwork

UNITED KINGDOM - Students produced examples of stunning Indian-style art to mark the Hindu festival of Diwali. Almost 90 students from the Arts University College at Bournemouth worked with two specialists in ‘Rangolies’. They used rice, gravel, lentils and beans to create colourful designs and patterns to celebrate the annual festival, which began on Wednesday. The 10 different Rangolies are in the graphics studio and in the courtyard – but they may not be visible for very long. The five-day festival is celebrated with fireworks, gifts and family meals, and commemorates the triumph of good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance. [link]

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Video: 360° 3D Mapping Projection of Paola Epifani

YOUTUBE
Featuring artwork by Padua, Italy artist Paola Epifani

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Book Review: A Woman's Tale of Faith & Art in Jerusalem 1911

JEWISH JOURNAL
By Dora Levy Mossanen

Let me begin by saying that when I finished reading the engrossing “Jerusalem Maiden” by Talia Carner (Harper Collins, $14.99), two thoughts flashed through my mind.  First, that the inevitable ending was quite satisfying!  And, second, that a number of the ancient cultural and religious rituals and practices among the ultra Orthodox Charedi Jews in Jerusalem at the onset of the twentieth century are still being followed, and not just by Charedim. Not until I read the richly detailed “Jerusalem Maiden” did I realize that the Talmud, Kiddushin decrees: “Happy the man whose children are boys and woe to him if they are girls.” [link]

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PHOTOS: New galleries for Islamic Art Treasures at the MET

MSNBC
PhotoBlog [View all]

Visitors look at ancient artifacts during a press preview of new galleries for the Art of the Arab Lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and Later South Asia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Oct. 24, 2011.

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LCI - Video Mapping on Mannequin Michael

YOUTUBE
By lciprojects on Aug 25, 2010

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Artist Farshchian and Iran's Culturati Rankled By MET's Ranking of Arab Countries

TEHRAN TIMES

IRAN - Ranking the name of Iran behind other countries in the title of galleries to be reopened in the Islamic Art section of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art has aroused some resentment in Iran. Master Iranian miniaturist Mahmud Farshchian and Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art curator Mahmud Shaluii objected to ranking the name of Iran “after other countries”. A suite of 15 dramatic new galleries for the art of the Arab lands, Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, and later South Asia will open at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on November 1. “Iran possesses more artworks in comparison with other countries that are named ahead of it in the title of the galleries,” Farshchian and Shaluii claimed. The grand reopening of the galleries will house the Metropolitan’s renowned collection of Islamic art—one of the finest and most comprehensive collections of its kind in the world. [link]

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Art from Zen Masters and More, at Florida's Morikami Museum

PALM BEACH POST

Daruma, Seki Bokuo is just one of the pieces on display at the Morikami.

FLORIDA - The Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens opened “Zenmi: A Taste of Zen: Paintings, Calligraphy, and Ceramics” on Saturday. It features the work of Zen masters from the 17th to 20th centuries and the assertion that enlightenment can be attained through meditation, self-contemplation, and intuition. The pieces are on loan from the collection of Riva Lee Asbell. The artists represented are venerated Zen teachers who took up the brush late in life to create religious art noted for its drama and boldness. The exhibition features more than 80 pieces, called Zenga, including paintings and calligraphy mounted as hanging scrolls, inscribed ceramics, and other objects dating back to the 17th century. This religious art was used in spiritual exercises, as aids to meditation, and as visual sermons. [link]

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Short film: Occupy London (Occupy LSX) - St Pauls Protest 15 October

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Morgan Library Exhibit: A Window Into Islamic Art .

WALL STREET JOURNAL

NEW YORK - The Morgan Library and Museum in New York spotlights a lesser-known pocket of its collection with "Treasures of Islamic Manuscript Painting From the Morgan." Gems include the late 13th-century Persian manuscript "Two Mountain Rams Fighting," above. The text is a treatise on animals; details like the bridge and gold clouds reflect Chinese artistic styles introduced by the Mongol invasion. Through Jan. 29. [link]

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Diwali 2011: 5 Things to Know about the Indian "Festival of Lights"

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TIMES
By Mark Johanson

A boy prepares deyas, or earthen oil lamps, to decorate his house during Divali celebration. Picture taken November 5, 2010.

INDIA - In the midst of India's jam-packed festival calendar, one celebration stands out from the pack as the most dazzling of them all: Diwali, the "Festival of Lights." Here's a look at Diwali customs and traditions as well as a day-by-day look at the typical activities of the five-day celebration: (1) Broadly speaking, Diwali is India's "Festival of Lights" and a joyous celebration that honors the triumph of good over evil; (2) Like all Hindu celebrations, spirituality lies at the heart of Diwali. Two deities in particular play a prominent role in the festivities, Ganesh and Lakshmi; (3) Diwali is predominantly celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains also embrace the celebration; (4) Diwali lasts from Wednesday Oct. 26 to Sunday Oct. 30, 2011; and (5) Also known by the name Deepavali, the festival of Diwali is not just celebrated in India, but in Singapore, Malaysia, and across the globe. [link]

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Renowned Artists to Create Stations of the Cross for Lentfest 2012

SCOTTISH CATHOLIC OBSERVER
By Martin Dunlop

Stephen Callaghan (above), Lentfest director

UNITED KINGDOM - Next year’s Lentfest celebrations has attracted 29 artists from across the UK to take part in an historic exhibition of Stations of the Cross and Resurrection at Glasgow University. The Archdiocese of Glasgow Arts Project (AGAP) made the announcement [yesterday] that a record number of artists have signed up to take part the Lentfest art exhibition next year, including Peter Howson, Jolomo (John Lowrie Morrison) and Anne Devine. The 28 artists who will depict the Stations consented to have their names entered into a draw to be allocated their particular subject. The twenty-ninth artist is Glasgow-based sculptress, Kate Robinson, who is working on a three-dimensional reflection on the Crucifixion. [link]

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Hollywood's Lucy Liu Takes Her Artwork in London

THE GUARDIAN
By Steve Ross

"Seventy Two" (2009) by Lucy Liu. Photograph: Martin Godwin

UNITED KINGDOM -  'I have been known to dumpster-dive," says Lucy Liu. "If I see something really fascinating and warped or distorted, like a piece of metal, I'll jump over and grab it and create something from it." Liu has always been an artist, she explains. Even while she was shooting movies, she would be drawing or sewing in her trailer. There's no evidence of dumpster-diving at Salon Vert. Downstairs is the piece that gives the exhibition its name: Seventy Two, a grid of 72 small paintings, mostly black ink on white paper, quickly executed. The inspiration was the 72 Names of God, a Jewish mystical concept derived from the Book of Exodus. [link]

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Video: Kate Askegaard's "Pieta" in Millions of Dots

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

ILLINOIS - The Video of the Week is of Illinois Sculptor Kate Askegaard, who spent nine months creating a replica of Michelangelo's "Pieta" - using tens of millions of dots. The result is a 5ft by 5ft recreation of the classic 1498–1499 work produced by the most famous of sculptors, Michelangelo (1475-564). According to the Daily Mail, the nine months of intensive work resulted in a $7500 purchase by the owner of international Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum.

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Russian Tall Ship Skips U.S. Port in Snub Linked to Jewish Case

THE MOSCOW TIMES
By Natalya Krainova

CALIFORNIA - A Russian frigate refused to dock in San Francisco on a Pacific tour because of concerns that it might be seized and held as collateral for a collection of Jewish books and manuscripts. The three-masted Nadezhda turned sail on the advice of the Foreign Ministry, even though a welcome delegation was waiting for it at the pier, the ship's owner, the Vladivostok-based Maritime State University, said Tuesday. The incident took place last Friday, but the university only disclosed the official reason for the snub on its web site this week. The ministry warned that the tall ship might be seized over a ruling by a Washington court that came into force this month in connection with a lawsuit by Chabad Lubavitch, a Hasidic group, the university said. [link]

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Buddhist Monks Create Healing Art, Displayed in Virginia College

ABC 13
By Melinda Zosh


VIRGINIA - Seven Buddhist monks from India [came to] Randolph College this week to create sacred art. They're creating a medicine Buddha mandala at the college's chapel. It's a 5-foot piece of sacred art completely made of colorful sand. The mandala is supposed to contain healing qualities, and the monks believe that the sick can be healed. The monks say that nothing stays in one form for very long. "Impermanent is that everything is going to change and we all are," said Tenzin Tinley, a monk. The work is on display to the public all this week from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Randolph's chapel. There will be a closing ceremony Friday at 3 p.m. where the artwork will be taken apart and then poured into the James River. [link]

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Iran's Ayatollah: Promoting Spirituality as the Goal of Art

FARS NEWS AGENCY

IRAN - Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei met with hundreds of outstanding scientific, cultural, literary, artistic, athletic, social and economic personalities in the western Kermanshah province. Addressing the meeting, His Eminence described art and science as divine blessings and said that the Iranian nation and the Islamic Republic will use these divine blessings in order to promote Islam, spirituality and transcendence, a report on the website of the Supreme Leader said. [link]

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New US Postage Stamps set for the Holidays

ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON - The US Post Office unveiled two new Christmas stamps Thursday, and is following on Friday with new stamps to commemorate the Jewish holiday Hanukkah and the African-American celebration Kwanzaa. This year's traditional "Madonna and Child" Christmas stamp features a painting by the 16th century artist Raphael which now hangs in the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore. The Hanukkah stamp features the eight letters Hanukkah on colored fields, representing the eight candles, and the second letter "K'' resembles the toy known as a dreidel. [link]

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Miami Congregation's Art Gallery Exhibit Explores Sukkot

FLORIDA JEWISH JOURNAL
By Sergio Carmona

"Four Species" by Shelter Serra

FLORIDA - Every Sukkot, Chabad of Midtown Miami builds its sukkah. However, this being the first year that the Maor Art Gallery, located at the same facility as the Chabad center, was opened during the holiday, the congregation wanted to make its sukkah part of an art exhibit. The exhibit "Four Species," which opened at the gallery, 3030 NE 2nd Ave. in Miami, last week and runs through Nov. 12, is a contemporary group show curated by Jon Feinstein, co-founder and curatorial director of the Humble Arts Foundation in New York, and Shana Beth Mason, a Miami-based art consultant and critic, that incorporates new works from four emerging artists in reference to the holiday. "This exhibition is intended to explore the fundamental principles behind the Sukkot festival," Beth Mason said. "Beyond ritual, custom and liturgy, 'Four Species' investigates ideas of impermanence, movement, organic life cycles and how art somehow slows the decay of everyday life." [link]

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Nazi Stolen St John Sculpture Returned to Jewish Heirs by German Museum

BLOOMBERG BUSINESS WEEK
By Catherine Hickley

A limewood sculpture of John the Baptist dating from 1510. 

GERMANY - A limewood sculpture of John the Baptist dating from 1510 will be returned to the U.S.-based heirs of a Jewish art-dealer couple persecuted by the Nazis, the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg said. The sculpture, housed in the Landesmuseum Wuerttemberg in Stuttgart, was auctioned without the owners’ permission in 1937, said an e-mailed statement from Baden-Wuerttemberg’s Ministry for Science, Research and Art. The couple, Jacob and Rosa Oppenheimer, had fled Berlin in 1933. Their art was impounded in 1935, according to ministry spokesman Jochen Laun. “The state has a historical and moral responsibility to investigate and give back cultural goods seized from those who were persecuted by the Nazi regime,” Baden-Wuerttemberg Art Minister Theresia Bauer said in the statement. [link]

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NYC's Metropolitan Museum's New Islamic Art Galleries to Open

FOX NY
By Julie Chang

NEW YORK - City leaders gathered Monday to celebrate the opening of the 15 galleries after eight years of construction [at the Metropolitan Museum of Art]. The galleries house 1,200 pieces of history from the 7th to 19th Centuries. They officially open to the public on November 1. [link]

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3-day International Seminar on Islamic Art Planned in India

ZEE NEWS

INDIA: A three-day international seminar on Islamic art and culture will be inaugurated by Vice President Mohammed Hamid Ansari here from Nov 25, organizing secretary Khalid Saeed said Monday. The Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU), Hyderabad, the Institute of Objective Studies, New Delhi, and the Muslim Educational, Social and Cultural Organization (MESCO), Hyderabad, are organizing it. The aim of the seminar is to discuss and share the research experiences of the cultural inter-connectedness of Islamic civilization in the context of Arabia, Persia, Central Asia, South-East Asia and India, said a statement from MANUU. "The seminar is being organized to highlight the different spheres of Islamic culture through different angles and the contribution of Muslims in different fields of life through the ages," Saeed said. IANS [link]

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NY Man's Possible Michelangelo on Display in Rome

ASSOCIATED PRESS
By Carolyn Thompson

NEW YORK - A possible 16th-century Michelangelo (c. 1545) painting that hung for years in a local family's home is being displayed in Rome as part of an exhibit of Renaissance art, a development its owner calls a major milestone as he works to have it accepted by the art world. Scholars disagree on whether "La Pieta With Two Angels" was painted by Michelangelo or by one of his collaborators. For now, the 19-by-25-inch work is described as "Michelangelesque" in a show sponsored by the philanthropic Rome Foundation, which transported the painting from the Buffalo area to Rome and funded its restoration over the past six months. It will be one of 170 pieces on display from Tuesday through Feb. 12 as part of "The Renaissance in Rome: A Token to Michelangelo and Raphael." [link]

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Cleveland Art Exhibit About Religious Women

CLEVELAND FOX 8 TV
By Andrea Fishman

OHIO - A new art exhibit showcasing the work of Northeast Ohio’s Religious Women opens [today], October 25th at the Cleveland Public Library. Called, "Progress & Promise," the traveling show celebrates the heritage and ministries of religious women through photos, artifacts, and more. Sponsored by the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland, the exhibit is on display in the Library Atrium through November 28th. The Cleveland Public Library is located at 325 Superior Avenue. [link]

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Holy Monstrance (Relic) from New Orleans to be Auctioned in NYC on Nov. 16

THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
By John Pope

The bejeweled altarpiece once seen at St. Alphonsus Church.

LOUISIANA - A bejeweled altarpiece from the 19th century that was at St. Alphonsus Church during the time of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos is up for auction Nov. 16 in New York City and may never return to New Orleans. The piece, which is scheduled to be sold at Sotheby’s auction house, is a monstrance, a vessel shaped like a cross surrounded by a sunburst. At the center is a glass case, called a luna, in which the consecrated Host is exposed for the adoration of the faithful. The monstrance, which gets its name from the Latin word monstrare (to show), was made in France in 1857 by Jean Alexandre Chertier for the Irish Channel church, one of three built in the 180Os by the Redemptorists. [link]

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Colorful Coffins and Funerals to Die For

WALL STREET JOURNAL
By SARAH MURRAY

In Ghana, the fantasy coffins on offer include giant soda bottles and airplanes
— and the exuberance extends to the funerals.

Within hours of the death of Steve Jobs earlier this month, impromptu memorials began to appear at Apple stores around the world. But creativity in sending off the dead is nothing new. Human beings are seemingly hardwired to use public rituals to mark such moments. We bury our loved ones in the ground. We burn them in fire. Today, gigantic fish, oversized mobile phones, scaled-down airplanes and enormous Coca-Cola bottles are among the fantasy coffins on offer. Boldly carved and painted in bright colors, they are works of art. The exuberance also extends to Ghanaian funerals, which often attract hundreds of guests who are fed, watered and entertained with live music, drumming and DJs. [link]

As we have become less certain of spiritual eternity, we also have started to look for solace in the more tangible things of this world. More of us want to hold on to physical evidence of our dead loved ones—in lockets designed to house tiny portions of their ashes or in gold pendants that immortalize their thumbprints, keepsakes marketed as "Thumbies" by Illinois-based Meadow Hill. LifeGem, a Chicago-based company, uses carbon extracted from cremated remains to make diamonds. We also are growing more creative in how we send off the departed. Hot Rod Caskets, based in Oklahoma, designs and produces a range of flashy models, including the Smoke Eater (with attachments for pike poles) for firefighters and the Uncle Sam (in desert sand and olive green, with camouflage lining) for members of the military. For sports fans, Michigan-based Eternal Image produces coffins decked out in the colors and logos of Major League Baseball teams, as well as a Star Trek line for Trekkies. [link]

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RELIGIOUS ART | TALK OF WEEK

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

ERNIE CEFALU's "Jesus Christ Superstar" (above) cover is the A&O Pick of the Week as producers announce its return to Broadway this spring 2012. This week's A&O trinity of questions are:

1. Did you vote for America's contemporary religious artwork of 2011? (Vote Here)
2. Which Clergy advocate for artists should be the 2011 Omega Prize honoree? (Vote Here)
3. Can an album cover really be considered religious art? (Comment Bottom of Page)

Listed below are the other stories since October 3 in the world of religious art. The stories are grouped by the five largest faith traditions, with an additional category for other/interfaith.

BUDDHIST ART:

• New Buddhist Stupa to Be Blessed at Earth Sanctuary in Washington State (AOA News)
• Buddhists Host Art Gala at Tibet House NYC (AOA News)

HINDU ART:

• Opinion: If Religious Zeal Inhibits Art We Are All Poorer (Sydney-Herald)
• Master Painters of India at Met Traces Tolerance & Conflict through Art (Star Ledger)
• Vijayadasami: Thousands of Children initiated into Learning through Art (The Hindu)

ISLAMIC ART:

• Islam-Inspired Comic Superheroes, Lauded by Obama Heads to USA (Bloomberg Business Week)
• Harvard Islamic Scholar Ali Asani Looks to Art to Bring People Together (Harvard Crimson)
• Rome Hosts Turkish Religious Art Exhibition (Today's Zaman)
• 76,000 People Visit Islamic Art Exhibition in Los Angeles (World Bulletin)

JUDAICA FINE ART:

• Bernice and Henry Tumen Collection Illuminate Jewish Law Artistry (Brandeis Now)
• Vassar Sukkot Project 5772 builds on Community's Common Ground (Miscellany News)
• Iconic Art of Peter Max Comes to St. Louis Art Gallery (Jewish Light)
• Sukkah City STL Exhibition Opens at Washington University (Patch)
• Jewish Obsession with Sukkot Rooted in Pagan Practice? (Jewish Press)

CHRISTIAN ART:

• New Book: Caravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane (New York Times)
• Video: Apocalypse is Coming...at the Tate (AOA News)
• Art Review: John Martin's Greatness and High Kitsch (New York Times)
• King James Bible Exhibit Traveling Across the Nation (The Houston Chronicle)
• BELIEVER FOR ARTISTS: Father James Krische | NYC (AOA News)
• Final Days for THE VEIL at University of Kentucky's The Art Museum (AOA News)
• Director of Museum of Contemporary Religious Art to lecture at Fordham University (AOA News)
• Artist, Emanuel Utti's Commission for St. Helena's Church (The Times Herald)
• Kaleidoscope Series Gem of Interdisciplinary Analysis (Miscellany News)
• Catholic Outreach Program invites Ohio Museum Director for Religious Art Talk (Canton Repository)
• Video: Book of Revelation for the iPhone (AOA News)
• 2012 Fine Art & Christianity Competition in Philly (AOA News)
• Growing Market for Christian Art, But Still Small (Huffington Post)
• ArtPrize's Safe, Non-provocative Christian Art Winner (Christian Century)
• Letter to Editor: Religious Symbolism of Caravaggio (The Telegraph)
• Op-Ed: Art History is Essential to Catholic Education (National Catholic Reporter)
• Jesus Christ Superstar: The Musical Hits Broadway this Spring (Black Planet Universal)
• A&O Meetup: Day of the Dead Workshop in Indianapolis (AOA News)

RELATED ARTS:

• Opinion: What are the "Occupy Wall Street Protests" in NYC? (AOA News)
• Videos: Occupy Wall Street (AOA News)
• Burning Man May Get a Sister City in Nevada (The Union)
• The Artwork of Dr. Death: Jack Kevorkian (Asberaz Post)
• Indy's Monument Circle Named as 1 of the 10 Great Public Spaces for 2011 (AOA News)
• A&O Prize 2011 Honorees to be Announced in November (AOA News)
• Young Artist Contest on Spirit & Death: Enter 10/26-29 (AOA News)
• In Ann Wolfs Art, Small Worlds of Intensity & Religious Iconography (The Times Union)
• Day of the Dead Workshops in Indianapolis (AOA News)
• Controverial Religious Art exhibit Comes to Brisbane, Australia (The Brisbane Times)
• 2011 Believer For Artists? You Decide, Vote Today (AOA News)
• Vote for America's Contemporary Religious Art Prize 2011 (AOA News)
• A&O Week Ahead | Indianapolis (AOA News)
• Installation by Polish Artist Withdrawn After Jewish Protests (Daily Mail)

Get your daily dose of Alpha Omega Arts on Facebook and/or Twitter, or catch-up with the A&O team at using the A&O Week Ahead in Indianapolis: connecting artists, faiths and communities through art.

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Op-Ed: Art History is Essential to Catholic Education

NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER
By Dale Artis Hackerman

An early Paleolithic painting of a bison from the Cave of Altamira near Santillana del Mar, Spain (AKG/Newscom/Bildarchiv Steffens)

The church’s role and support of the arts throughout the development of Western civilization cannot be underestimated. In many U.S. public high schools, budgets are being cut, especially in the arts. So why mention the importance of a strong curriculum in art history as part of a well-rounded Catholic high school education? Because I believe that when students study art history, they become closer to the church on an intellectual and cultural level that greatly enhances their relationship with God. Art and religious expression go hand-in-hand, and the importance of art to convey spirituality is ancient. It has existed since the dawn of civilization. [Dale Artis Hackerman is chair of the fine arts department at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken, N.J.] [link]

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Letter to Editor: Religious Symbolism of Caravaggio

THE TELEGRAPH
By Jo Noble

'The Supper at Emmaus’, 1601 by Caravaggio

I was interested to read the American artist George Condo's comments regarding The Supper at Emmaus by Caravaggio (Review, October 15). This is a naturalistic everyday scene, but there are many symbols in this image. The man standing and looking on in doubt alludes to the acknowledgement that many people will not believe that Christ is the Son of God. The man's shadow hangs on the wall behind Christ, giving Christ a halo. The outstretched arms of St James (wearing a shell) confirm the astonishment that Christ has risen and returned. The grapes are a symbol of Christ's blood and the bread that He is blessing refers to the bread of life. Many religious images had rotting fruit painted in them symbolising original sin, but the presence of the pomegranate symbolises Christ's Resurrection. [link]

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ArtPrize's Safe, Non-provocative Christian Art Winner

CHRISTIAN CENTURY
by Amy Frykholm

"Crucifixion" by Mia Tavonatti

MICHIGAN - Mia Tavonatti's Crucifixion, a work of stained glass mosaic, is the winner of this year's ArtPrize in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Decided by popular vote, the award comes with the largest single cash award for a work of art--$250,000.  This is ArtPrize's third year, and there were more than 1,500 entries in 164 venues. Viewers vote, and then vote again for one of the top ten vote getters. This year, however, the award has caused an uproar. On the one hand, critics complained about the aesthetics of the winning piece. One called Crucifixion "Tim McGraw wearing a wig on a cross."  [link]

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Growing Market for Christian Art, But Still Small

THE HUFFINGTON POST
By Daniel Grant

[There is] a growing number of artists who have found success selling to the Christian market, a large realm of the population that does not see itself as art collectors but is willing to spend limited amounts of money on prints and posters that reflect its beliefs and values. A pioneer in this market is the California painter Thomas Kinkade. Most of the Christian art market, however, is focused on the specific images rather than the name or style of the artist. Inspirational artwork has a greater likelihood of selling, but that work is less illustrative of biblical stories and more metaphoric of "God's love for mankind, the beauty of the world God created," said Daniel Gerhartz, a painter in Kewaskum, Wis. [link]

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Buddhists Host Art Gala at Tibet House NYC

AOA NEWS

NEW YORK - The International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) invites socially engaged art lovers to the first International Buddhist Art Gala at Tibet House in New York City on November 19, 2011 from 7-10pm to raise funds for important INEB human rights and peace-building programs in Asia. The gala evening will include live music, cultural dance performances, and a special exhibition and silent auction of Buddhist artwork by esteemed artists from around the world, including Lowell Boyers, Songdej Thipthong, and Steven P. Perkins. Speaking at the gala are Sulak Sivaraksa, the co-founder of INEB, and American Buddhist Bernie Glassman, founder of Zen Peacemakers and Greyston Foundation. The Tibet House is located at 22 West 15th St, NYC. For more information on the gala, visit http://www.inebnycgala.org/.

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Jesus Christ Superstar: The Musical Hits Broadway this Spring

BLACK PLANET UNIVERSAL
By Oretha Winston

CANADA - Producers announced Tuesday that the rock musical, "Jesus Christ Superstar" about the last days of Jesus written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice will hit New York in the spring, a move that was widely expected. Previews will begin on March 1 at the Neil Simon Theatre and an official opening is set for March 22. Des McAnuff, the artistic director of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Ontario, where the revival originated this summer, will again direct. The latest stage production opened at the Canadian festival in June and ends its run there on Nov. 6 before moving to the La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, Calif., for final tweaking from Nov. 18 to Dec. 31 before its Broadway run. [link]

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Installation by Polish Artist Withdrawn After Jewish Protests

DAILY MAIL
By Graham Smith

Controversial: An art installation showing a film of naked people playing tag
in a former Nazi death camp gas chamber has been withdrawn from exhibition in Berlin

GERMANY - Modern art installation of emaciated naked Nazi war camp prisoners playing tag in a former Nazi death camp gas chamber has been withdrawn from exhibition in Germany. Jewish leaders in Berlin were appalled that the Game Of Tag exhibit by Polish artist Artur Zmijewski was being screened in a city gallery. The three-minute film shows men and women running around naked inside what at first appears to be a cellar. [link]

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Jewish Obsession with Sukkot Rooted in Pagan Practice?

JEWISH PRESS
By Menachem Wecker

TEXAS - In some ways, Sukkot is the most contemporary of holidays. Many pay good money and invest a lot of time and effort to obtain a beautiful etrog-indeed its biblical name is "fruit of the beautiful tree"-and the most visually appealing lulav, hadasim and aravot. The lulav and etrog, whether alongside each other or appearing separately, are some of the most prominent symbols in early Jewish art. Steven Fine explains in his book, Art & Judaism in the Greco-Roman World: Toward a New Jewish Archaeology, the lulav form might have evolved from the symbol of the victory palm, which first appeared on coins between 480 and 445 B.C.E.[link]

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A&O Week Ahead | Indianapolis

Indianapolis Arts Center's "Day of the Dead" poster

Wed., Oct. 26-29, 1-5pm | Art Entry Deadline
Art entries are due for Beyond Dead: A Youth Reponse, a High School Art contest exploring what happens to the Body after Death, as part of the 16th Annual Spirit & Place Festival. Includes $750 in prizes and no entry fee. Produced in partnership with the Indianapolis Art Center, entries are due at Indiana Interchurch Center, 1100 West 42nd Street, (317) 755-8400, alphaomegaarts.org.


Thursday, October 28, 2:30-3:3pm | Halloween Art Tour 
From thieves, trickery and Satan to images of religious reflections, angels and cupids, this treasure hunt will be about learning the role of Angels and Demons played in art over the ages. Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road, (317) 923-1331, imamuseum.org.

Friday, October 28, 7 pm | Halloween Movie Night
In The Shining (1980), the film version of Stephen King’s simple tale of demonic possession is complex, revelatory, hellish riff on madness, unreliability and ambiguity. The Shining follows the descent of a writer and family man (Jack Nicholson) into murderous psychosis at an isolated mountain resort hotel. Shown in DVD in The Toby Theater. Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road, (317) 923-1331, imamuseum.org.
 
Saturday, October 29, 1-2pm | Christianity in Art Tour
Discover how the Church used art filled with images and symbols to educate and to influence its followers during times of change and conflict. Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road, (317) 923-1331, imamuseum.org.

Saturday, October 29, noon-5pm | Day of the Dead Celebration
Join the Indianapolis Art Center for its 12th annual celebration of the Dia de los Muertos holiday (Day of the Dead). There will be exhibitions of shrines, altars, traditional Mexican food and activities for the entire family. Free. Indianapolis Art Center, 820 East 67th Street, (317)255-2462, dayofthedeadindy.org.

Thru January 16, 2012 | African Spirituality Exhibit
The Dynasty and Divinity: Ife in Ancient Nigeria exhibition features the artistic accomplishments of this unique 12th- to 15th-century civilization in what is today southwestern Nigeria, and examines how factors of dynastic power and divine authority shaped the exceptional arts from Ife. Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road, (317) 923-1331, imamuseum.org.

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Sukkah City STL Exhibition Opens at Washington University

PATCH

"60 degree Sukkah" by Filip Tejchman

MISSOURI - An art exhibition [which opened Tuesday] at Washington University's Danforth Campus explores the concept of boundaries within the framework of the Jewish holiday called Sukkot. The exhibition runs through Saturday on the lawn of the Ann W. Olin Women's Building lawn. It features the artwork of 10 finalists selected from a pool of more than 40 candidates, an article on the university's website states. St. Louis Hillel and The Museum of Imajewnation also developed the competition. Jews worldwide celebrate the holiday of Sukkot by building temporary structures known as Sukkahs, Kastner said. There, they commemorate the Jews' exodus from Egypt and celebrate the bounty of the autumn harvest. [link]

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76,000 People Visit Islamic Art Exhibition in Los Angeles

WORLD BULLETIN

CALIFORNIA - A total of 76,000 people visited "Gifts of the Sultan" exhibition in Los Angeles between June 5 and September 5. Turkish Culture & Tourism Ministry stated on Monday that the exhibition, displaying 200 objects about Islamic culture, took place in Los Angeles Art Museum. The exhibition, also including 19 pieces from Turkey, will be shown in Houston Fine Arts Museum between October 23, 2011 and January, 16, 2012. "Gifts of the Sultan" includes collections like carpets, wooden furniture, jewelry, weapons and books from America, Europe and Middle East. The exhibition aims to introduce Islamic art and culture to U.S. people. [link]

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2012 Fine Art & Faith Competition in Philly

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

PENNSYLVANIA - White Stone Gallery announces a national call to contemporary artists for the 2012 Fine Art & Faith Exhibit, to be held January 14 - February 4 at the gallery's location in Philadelphia, PA. The faith expressed in the submissions must be supported by the Bible. A selection of works from the exhibit will be featured online for one year. One artist will receive a year contract as a represented artist with White Stone Gallery. For more information, visit the White Stone Gallery website: http://www.whitestonegallery.com/.

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Iconic Art of Peter Max Comes to St. Louis Art Gallery

JEWISH LIGHT
By Leslie Brownstein

"Western Wall" by Peter Max

MISSOURI - After a 10-year absence from St. Louis, [Peter] Max will be in town this weekend where his exhibit "Colors of a Better World" is on display at the Ober Anderson Gallery in Clayton. Max was born Peter Max Finkelstein in Germany in 1937 to Jewish parents who fled the Nazis. They first landed the family in Shanghai, China; then Haifa, Israel; Paris, France, and eventually, Brooklyn, New York, where they settled in 1953. And while he doesn't like to be labeled as "a Jewish artist," he says he is very proud of his "Jewishness," adding, "My father's father was from Poland and he was a Hasid. I lived in Israel and I speak fluent Hebrew." [link]

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America's 10 Most Inspirational Religious Artworks of 2011

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

The following are the 10 finalists for this the 4th Annual Alpha & Omega Prize for Contemporary Religious Art. Please cast your vote by sending an email to member@alphaomegaarts.org by midnight on Monday, October 24, 2011. Key items to remember in making your selection are: (a) this is an interfaith visual art competition; (2) all works are recent works; (3) it's an American prize for America artwork; and (4) the works must add to the American dialogue about faith in America. The winning work will be announced on November 1, 2011.

• "Sita Sings the Blues" by Nina Paley, an 82-minute animated video exploring Hindu traditions.
• "Mandela Ornament I" by Stephen Fairey is a Buddhist inspired print.
• "Alios Itzhuk" by Kehinde Wiley, an oil painting exploring the African experience as Jews.
• "St. John's Bible" is a group project by visual artists who illuminated the Holy Bible over a 15-yr period.
• "Bene Isreal" by New Jersey resident and artist, Sonja Benjamin. This photo project explores the experience of Indians who are also Jews.
• "Resurrection" by Enrique Chagoya, an oil painting of Christ in response to the previous year's controversial painting, "The Misadventures of the Romantic Cannibals."
• "Sister Louisa" by Grant Henry, an art installation & performance art piece in the form of a commercial bar in Atlanta, GA.
• "Ganesha Statue" by Rick Davis, a metal sculpture of Hindu god on display in Idaho's public art program.
• "Stained Window" by a group of 50+ students from City of Angels independent school in Los Angeles working with graffiti artist Banksy.
• "Book of Revelation" by Chris Koelle, an illustrated telling of the entire book of Revelations with 600 drawings set to music. It's designed for use on iPhone.

Since 2008, the A&O Prize for Contemporary Religious Art has been the leading art prize focused on prompting dialogue about religious art. The prize celebrates the creation of American artwork that sparks an American dialogue about faith in America. Follow this [link] for a detailed description of the award and criteria from the project's inception in 2008.

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12 American Clergy who Believe in Artists

AOA NEWS
By Tahlib

For the third year in a row, the readers of Alpha Omega Arts will decide on the annual Omega Prize for Clergy Advocate for Artists.  Please cast your vote by sending an email to clergy@alphaomegaarts.org with the name of the clergy member who has earned your vote by midnight on Monday, October 24, 2011.

1. Pastor Rob Bell, Mars Hill Community Church (MI) wrote bestselling book, "Love Wins" based on the inspiration of an artist who portrayed Ghandi in a church art exhibit.
2. Pastor Bill Carter, First Presbyterian Church of Clarks Summitt (PA) used artwork to fight prejudice and intolerance against Jews.
3. Pastor Kevin Chubb, Cape Carteret Baptish Church (NC) empowered congregation member to paint mural reflecting church teaching series, and hosted art festival.
4. Pastor Mike Frankowiak, First Lutheran Church of Yuba City (CA) makes the connections between human creation and the creation of works of artwork.
5. Pastor Barbara Huisman, First Presbyterian Church of Fort Dodge (IA) advocates for creating art to become closer to God.
6. Rabbi Mark Kaiserman, Temple Emanu-El (NJ), incorporates art in the worship service to enhance the connection with God
7. Rev. James Krische, Saint Cecilia Catholic Church in Brooklyn (NY), provided church buildings to create an artist community free of religious constraint.
8. Pastor, Dr. Mark Ross, Marion Baptist Church (WV) preached that an artist's interpretation of scripture has as much value as any other authority.
9. Pastor Joseph Shreve, Chapel Hill United Methodist Church (WV) commissioned a local artist to create a mural for the church.
10. Pastor Erik Spencer, First Presbyterian Church of Verona (NJ) sponsored a Lego Art Contest to teach kids the lessons of scripture.
11. Pastor Sam Wheatley, New Song Presbyterian Church (UT) took a stand in support of including nudity in religious art, when appropriate.
12. Rev. Jonathon Wiggins, Resurrection Fellowship Church (CO) reached out to controversial artist Enrique Chagoya when the rest of the religious community was protesting his protest art; and won over a life-long friend.

Readers may choose from the list of nominees below (Believers For Artists) or select your own. The previous honorees for the Omega Prize are Fr. Terrence Dempsey of Missouri and Father Luke of New York City. Who will be the 2011 Alpha & Omega Prize Advocate for Artists? Readers decide.

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