Appreciating iconography does not come easily for many in the Protestant and Reformed traditions. In its extreme expression this lack of appreciation has even resulted in image smashing rampages and literal de-facement of art [iconoclasm].
Shortly we will contemplate two great icons, one Coptic and one Russian Orthodox, with a view toward recovering an appreciation of this spiritual tradition.
Do we gaze upon icons, or do they gaze upon us?
Texts to Hear and think about
6 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 7 you shall have no other gods before me.
8 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 9 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and fourth generation of those who reject me Deuteronomy 5:6-9
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; 16 for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross. Colossians 1:15-20
What do you see? An objective answer will exclude the assumption that this is Jesus Christ. A possible answer is, a man, Caucasian, with long hair, and wearing a white robe, with a far-off mystical gaze.
What do you feel?
What do you wonder about?
Titile: Head of Christ
Artist: Warner Sallman
Year: 1940
What do you see? Check all that apply
__Beard
__Long Brown Hair
__White Robe
__Caucasian
__Detached
__Engaged
__Stiff Upper Lip
__Smile
What do you feel?
What do you wonder about?
Titile: Head of Christ AKA Surfer Jesus
Artist: Richard Hook
Year: 1964
Sallman’s Head of Christ is an extraordinarily successful work of Christian popular devotional art, it had been reproduced over half a billion times worldwide by the end of the 20th century. Enlarged copies of the work have been made for churches, and small pocket or wallet-sized prayer cards bearing the image have been mass-produced for private devotional use. The painting is said to have “become the basis for [the] visualization of Jesus” for “hundreds of millions” of people.
More here and here
Hook’s Head of Christ portrait presented a Jesus whose image looked more like the youth of the 60’s and, therefore, appeared more relatable to their ideologies and goals… perhaps with a twinge of rebellion from the former ways included.
More here.
Do these realistic details combine to make a compelling portrait of Jesus? Is one more relatable than the other? One more “Holy”? Which are you more drawn to? Which is more “inclusive” of you, which is “set apart” from you?
What do you think?