“We can do great work individually, we can do even greater work together.”
Tower Thinking
There has been a trend in the last couple of hundred years for modern artists to isolate themselves, each in his or her own “ivory tower,” so that their art is “pure,” unaffected by the influence of other artists or ideas outside of their own. This is another byproduct of our age which tells artists that art is whatever they say it is and no one can tell them differently. This is an intensely personal view of art and leads to work that is incomprehensible to the general public unless the artist explains what it is they were trying to achieve.
Cathedral Thinking
But some of our greatest artistic achievements have come from collaboration. Perhaps the finest examples are the great gothic cathedrals of Europe. They were not built by a single individual. No matter how talented a single artist or architect may have been he was not up to the task of building such a monumental structure alone.
The construction of the cathedrals spanned centuries and employed artists and craftsmen of every vocation. These artists and craftspeople often spanned generations. This was perhaps the most holistic, magnificent, and extensive example of patronage in history. At no other time have so many arts integrated with each other into one supreme spiritual vision.
Even now the glory of these buildings inspires men and women to their greatest desires, thoughts, and expressions nearly a thousand years after their construction. The cathedrals are the result of hundreds of people working together toward a common goal. Those who started the work would not live to see it finished, but it didn’t matter.
Everyone contributed to this project that had as its purpose a way for everyone to glorify God.
With perhaps one or two exceptions, we no longer take generations to build any structure, let alone one whose purpose id to glorify God. But we do still collaborate on extensive artistic projects.
Consider the film industry. When you go to the movies do you stay until the final credits have rolled? Many people simply leave at this point and pay no attention to the hundreds of people that were necessary to make that film a reality. The film industry continues to employ an incredibly diverse number of trades and crafts that all come together to produce a work of art. Like any other work, the artistic merits of any particular film can be debated but it remains a creative work that is the product of collaboration. Like cathedrals, like most artistic endeavors, films also have the power to inspire men and women to their greatest desires, thoughts, and expressions.
The Power of Collaboration
Human beings work best when we work together.
God is a Trinity of three persons, made in His image and likeness, we are made to be part of a community, part of a team. Even God does not act alone but rather He invites us to be a part of His great plan of salvation by bringing others to Him.
In his Letter to the Philippians Saint Paul writes, “I pray always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now.” Phil 1:4-5
Saint Paul is reminding us that every Christian has a role in spreading the Gospel, the Good News, to all nations. God has chosen to include us in His work.
Each of us has a mission in life and each of us has been given gifts to accomplish that mission. Artists of all types should be aware of the incredible power they have to move hearts and minds.
To be on a mission is to be sent. We are sent out into the world armed with our unique combination of gifts to lift up hearts and minds to contemplate heavenly things.
Blessed John Henry Newman understood that not only are we on a mission but that we have best chance of accomplishing that mission when we work together. In 1848 he wrote:
“Lord, you have created me to do you some definitive service; you have committed some work to me that you have not committed to another. I have my mission, I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons… I shall do good, I shall do your work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it, if I but do your commandments and serve you in my calling.”
As artists, as a creative people, how are we called to participate in this mission? The first step is to realize that our gifts are not given to us to “find ourselves,” that is, indulge in our own personal expression creating work that is incomprehensible to the casual viewer. There is certainly room for this but that is not why we were given gifts in the first place. Whether we paint, write, dance, act, sculpt, build or participate in any of the other many ways in which artistic talent manifests itself, our mission is to move closer to God by bringing others closer to Him. Our gifts are given to us so that we may share them with others.
This does not mean that every work of art has to be explicitly religious or that every artist must be an artist of “sacred art.” But it does mean we should strive to create beauty in everything we do, to show the splendor of God in every face, in every song, in every blade of grass.
We can do great work individually, we can do even greater work together.
Pax Vobiscum
2nd Sunday of Advent