Thesis
Art & Altars: Reflections on Contemporary Art and Contemporary Christianity
(2018)
Abstract
This essay provides a backdrop to my developments as a visual artist and a spiritual seeker—and the collision of these two identities during my time at the New Hampshire Institute of Art. My experience at NHIA has helped me discover how contemporary art practices beautifully embody my closely-held Christian beliefs while also bearing resemblance to many forms of spiritual expression in the Bible. In this paper, I discuss the relationship between contemporary art, my studio work, and my artistic influences with the Biblical concepts of incarnation, parable, and prophetic performance. I also discuss the inspiration surrounding my thesis studio project Altar Ego. In this multi-media project, I probe at the flawed underpinnings of the current distortions of Christianity and symbolically explore a vision of faith which stems from a selfless and relational approach to the Divine.
Disciplines
Publication Date
Spring January, 2018
Degree
M.F.A.
Field of study
Visual Art
Department
New Hampshire Institute of Art Manchester, NH
Advisor
Patricia Miranda, Craig Stockwell
Citation Information
Tessa Davidson. "Art & Altars: Reflections on Contemporary Art and Contemporary Christianity" (2018) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/tdavidson/1/
Creative Commons license
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons CC_BY International License.