Christopher-Williams_Queen-of-SheebaQueen-Esther-resized.jpg Loading Video . . . Visual artist, Christopher Adam Williams (AKA "The Black DaVinci") celebrates the enduring beauty of women of character in this meditation on Proverbs 11:16. Proverbs 11:16 The Modern Day Queen of Sheba & Queen Esther By Christopher Williams Credits: Curated by: Rebecca Testrake 2020 84 x 49.5 inches Oil on canvas and copper leaf Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link "The Modern Day Queen of Sheba & Queen Esther" seeks to contribute to my emergent dialogue and expression of black joy. This body of work is dedicated to the joyous, resilient black women in my life. The use of the color purple invites a conversation about the color of our skin. Often our skin is associated with oil, darkness or dinginess. Darker skin, throughout history, has been considered ugly. However, the choice of the color purple is rooted not only in its beauty and luster, but also its royal ancestry. Colonial kings and queens decreed only royalty and the sophisticated were allowed to wear purple. Purple dye was considered more valuable than gold. My work depicts that African Americans wear their royal ancestry on their skin everyday. I then look back to early modern art history from the Byzantine art period, the gold, copper and silver leaf used in the background highlights my subjects as being blessed by God or as an object of veneration. The relationship of purple and gold allows for each portrait to project a majestic, heavenly glow. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Christopher Williams’ art practice focuses on Black Joy — a spiritual feeling that has uplifted the African Diaspora through countless trials and tribulations in the quest for freedom and equality. It defies a simplistic explanation. He explains its experience: Black Joy is like a heartbeat. Never bitter, it is sweeter than the blackest of cherries or the richest of chocolates. It’s like a steady climb or an out-of-frame kiss. It is a moment that is magical and void of being Black, judged and discriminated against. My joy, my Black Joy may not be the same as the next. It is my vehicle for connection, educating others and sharing my experience as a Black man. What makes the journey of my work unique is my ability to develop authentic empathy for my subject matter. I have found this process is like walking to the edge of darkness and then summoning the courage to take one more step to understand what lies beyond our differences. These steps are necessary to overcome bigotry, hatred and indifference, to embrace the pursuit of joy. Website Christopher Williams About the Artist Honor Thy Father Christopher Williams Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

revelation21_kgoetzinger_for_web.jpg Loading Video . . . This gorgeous mixed media textile work of Karen Goetzinger depicts the vivid text from the whole chapter of Revelation 21 describing a "new heaven and a new earth. Revelation 21 Revelation 21 By Karen Goetzinger Credits: Curated by: Jonathon Roberts 2011 30 x 30 inches Mixed Media Textile Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Revelation 21 is a triptych consisting of Italian pima cotton organdy, cotton, tulle, gold lamé, acrylic paint, and gold leaf. Three 30″ x 10″ canvasses combine to make a 30″ x 30″ work in reflection of Revelation 21:16 -- "The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide." The city skyline is layers of organdy (often used in wedding gowns) built up as a city and then monoprinted with acrylic paint, connecting to verse 2: "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband." The bottom portion of each section was made by painting cotton fabric – cutting up the fabric into small rectangles of varying sizes and reassembling, overlapping the rectangles slightly. That new “fabric” was then stitched over the top in interlocking rectangles. Sheer tulle was stitched over the top in reflection of verses 19-20: "The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst." Each section of the triptych was monoprinted: the red “splotches” symbolizing the blood of the Lamb, the portions of text as well as the gold lamé Alpha & Omega, and Chi Rho. This stems from verse 6: "He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End." The gold leaf cross illuminates the city from verse 23: "The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp." The piece now resides in the east entrance of the chapel at Martin Luther College in New Ulm, Minnesota. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection In a world increasingly enthralled with high speed technology and quantity over quality production goals, Karen Goetzinger finds artistic inspiration in time honored traditions. She uses techniques that compel her to savor the process of creating; from the exhilaration of selecting colours and textures to the rhythmic lullaby of stitching by hand. Ms. Goetzinger is an award winning artist, teacher, and lecturer currently living in Ottawa, Ontario. She is known and sought after for her finely detailed mixed media textile works that are influenced by her roots in traditional quilt making, couture construction, and her lifelong passion for the urban landscape. Since 2005 she has taught at the Ottawa School of Art and is currently a mentor/instructor in the Fine and Contemporary Craft Mentoring Program. Website Karen Goetzinger About the Artist Karen Goetzinger Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

nicora-gangi_2013-air-4_lies_small.jpg Loading Video . . . Resident Artist Nicora Gangi's fourth work for 2013 deals with the theme of "Lies" and responds to Isaiah 59:2-4 as part of a collection inspired by each of the six themes for the year. Isaiah 59:2-4 Lies By Nicora Gangi Credits: Curated by: Spark+Echo Arts, 2013 Artist in Residence 2013 12 x 15 inches Paper Collage on Strathmore Paper & Adobe Photoshop Mixed Media Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Out of this abundance of wickedness in the heart of this unregenerate people their mouth speaks falsehood. They speak lies pretending to be kind when in truth they intend the greatest mischief. These blasted the reputation of those they hated. They took from them their estates and lives. A false tongue is sharp arrows, and when they could not speak openly against their neighbors, for fear of being disproved, they muttered it secretly- backbiters are called whisperers. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Nicora Gangi was educated at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA (BFA 1974 and MFA 1976). She was a Professor of Art at Syracuse University for 29 years. Gangi has been awarded many Grand Prize and First Place awards and grants. She has been and continues to be published in numerous artist’s books on pastel paintings. She has lectured regionally and nationally as a visiting artist at universities and artist’s guilds. She is represented by: Edgewood Gallery (Syracuse, NY), and Gangi Studio (Winter Garden, FL ). Website Nicora Gangi About the Artist The Mountain of the House of The Lord I See Him but Not Now So Shall Your Descendants Be This One The Body without the Spirit | 1 The Body without the Spirit | 2 The Body without the Spirit | 3 The Sealed Ones Peace with God The Everlasting Protective Love of God Our Father When the Lord Gives Us The Land I See Him but Not Now The Mountain of the House of The Lord Paneled and Ruins Series The Harvest Spirit of God-The Spirit Hovering Memories Fool Dance Your Truth from the Great Congregation Psalm 18 Sound of Their Wings Psalm 16 Kiss the Son EAST, WEST, NORTH & SOUTH AT HIS TABLE Nicora Gangi Other Works By Visual artist Nicora Gangi created a collection of mixed media works in response to scripture and the six themes of the year as a 2013 Artist in Residence. Explore her works created throughout the year: Spirit of God – The Spirit Hovering Light and Darkness (February 4, 2013) Fool Fools (April 13, 2013) Dance Dancing (June 13, 2013) Lies (This piece) Lies (August 22, 2013) The Harvest Harvest (October 17, 2013) Memories Memory (December 12, 2013) Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

sound-of-the-prophet-transparent-png.png Loading Video . . . The Sound of the Prophet by international artist Duda Penteado is a response to the wild conversation between God and the Prophet Elijah in 1 Kings 19:9-18. 1 Kings 19:9-18 The Sound of the Prophet By Duda Penteado Credits: Artist Location: Jersey City, New Jersey Curated by: Barret 2011 31 inches diameter Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link The real question for me today is: how can an artist working in the twenty-first century continue to create original works of art after the overwhelming presence of remarkable twentieth century art movements like Cubism , Dada, Surrealism, Bauhaus and Cobra? When I go to museums, I look at art from two different perspectives. One is from a historical point of view and the other is from the perspective of an artist. I will never paint like Jackson Pollock or Francisco de Goya but I profoundly admire the challenges they both brought to the aesthetics of art. The last two years have been significant for me in terms reflecting on art, history, and war. Dada was one of the most significant avant–garde art movements, born in the heart of Europe in the midst of World War I. This war remains the most brutal conflict ever seen in history and the artists of the period challenged tradition. Art as it was known would never be the same: industrialization, the photo-illustrated press, radio broadcasting, and commercial cinema. They created new strategies of art–making, including collage, montage, assemblage, readymades, and media pranks. My art installation Beauty for Ashes Project is a response to the history of modernism and functions as a twenty-first century parallel that reflects on the consequences of our times. The real challenge is to know when an artist stops quoting someone else and begins to quote himself. Great art comes from within, it is the true language of the soul. To create art is an act of faith in itself. In my case my faith in Christ Jesus is an endless source of inspiration and empowerment in the areas of creativity, love and hope. —Duda Penteado Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Duda Penteado was born in São Paulo in 1968, and studied at FIAM – SP. Throughout the 1990s, he exhibited in Brazil, then moved to New York City where he obtained a position at Muriel Studio in Soho, NYC, as an assistant to Sheila Marbain, the inventor of a new "silk monotype" technique, which was employed by many leading contemporary artists. Active in Brazil and the USA, as well as in Europe throughout the late-1990s and the early 21st Century, he showed in The Jersey City Museum, Jersey City, N.J.; Biennale Internazionale Dell'Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italy, 2009; Monique Goldstrom Gallery, NYC; The Museum of Art and Origins, Harlem, NYC (NY); BACI-The Brazilian American Cultural Institute, Washington, DC; Museo de Las Americas, Denver, CO; CITYarts 272nd Mural, "Nature is Love on Earth", New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, The St. John's Recreation Center, Crown Heights, Brooklyn, NYC, 2008, 2009; Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY, New Jersey City University, Jersey City, NJ, Kean University, Union, NJ; Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ; Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ; Drew University, Madison, NJ; Middlebury College, Vermont; UFES- Universidade Estadual do Espírito Santo, Vitoria, ES; UNESP-Universidade Estadual Paulista, SP, and SESC – SP. He was President of the Artist Certification Board, Jersey City, NJ, until 2010. His awards and recognition from various institutions in the United States include: Urban Artist Fellowship Award, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT; Goldman Sachs Student Art Project Grant, Jersey City, NJ (2006, 2007, 2008); Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; The Robert Flaherty Film Seminar, Claremont, CA; Special Guest for Artistic Achievement & Commitment to YMCA Greater, NY-Youth, NYC; American Graphic Design Award, Interactive Multimedia Installation, NYC; Humanitarian Award from the Hudson County Chapter of the American Conference on Diversity, Jersey City, NJ, and received a Kappa Pi International Honorary Art Fraternity Award, Eta Rho Chapter, New Jersey City University, Jersey City, NJ. Along with Mario Tapia and Dr. Carlos Hernandez, he has been at the helm of the We Are You Project since 2005. Website Duda Penteado About the Artist Crislaba Duda Penteado Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . Screenwriter Samuel Gray Anderson explores the theme of healing and Hebrews 11:13-16 (below) in his new script about a father attempting to reunite with his son from a past life. Hebrews 11:13-16 Distant Greetings By Samuel Gray Anderson Credits: Artist Location: Gardena, California Curated by: Michael Markham 2014 Screen Story Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Distant Greetings is a potential title that has accompanied me for many years. It was inspired by Hebrews 11:13-16: ‘All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.’ (NASB) I find these words deeply moving in their description of these heroes who glimpsed salvation from afar and held to that promise, refusing the false consolation of a return to a prior – lost or abandoned – homeland, insisting on the existence of something better, something which alone merits that name, ‘homeland.’ Yet my mind constantly seizes on the distance in this expression, ‘welcomed them from a distance.’ There is hope in this, but also a deep longing. Each time I have tried writing something with this title, my mind has gravitated toward the distance rather than the promise; or perhaps you could say that it has lost its way in that distance. I find this aspect much more palpable, but trying to articulate it, I seek a stronger sense of the promise that lies beyond it. I don’t think that I have ever succeeded in these attempts, which is perhaps why I turn to these words so often. As I was contemplating this passage again recently, the title resonated in my mind with a story that I have wanted to tell for a long time, loosely inspired by an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story, ‘Babylon Revisited’; the story of a man trying to reunite with his child, lost due to many failings that he is trying to make right, not yet finding himself capable of doing so. The central character in this story experiences it on a much different level, but he also lives in this tension between something that lies behind and a promise of life to come – in this case, embodied in his child and the potential for reconciliation. Following this basic framework while writing my own story, I sought to draw out this dynamic, making the promise of life more pronounced in certain moments while also deepening the sense of separation. Fitzgerald’s story is about a man working to convince others that he deserves to be a father; with mine, I wanted to present a man who still has to convince himself, and who struggles with the tension between coming to terms with one’s past and forgetting, never quite certain where healing lies. Fleshing out this story, I found that I was able to inhabit it more deeply by working within a form that is new for me; a screenplay form that incorporates short story elements, or a short story form constructed in a way that points toward a film. Pasolini wrote of the screenplay as an art form that aspires to become another art form: it is not complete in itself, but always points toward another work that will fulfill it. Exaggerating this aspect of the form seemed fitting for exploring this idea of living in between a promise and its fulfillment, and for exploring the tension between forgetting the past (but possibly losing all it meant) and seeking reconciliation with it (but risking to live perpetually in its shadow). In order to live more fully in the skin of my characters, and with the hope of giving the reader a more intense, if more indirect, taste of the subsequent film that could arise from this form, I tilted the screenplay in the direction of prose. At times, the process took me much further than I expected or intended, and certain passages will clearly be impossible to recreate in a film without significant translation. But I found this to be very fruitful, as it helped me more fully to feel what was at stake in the questions driving it. The more I ponder these questions, the more I find that they are central to my understanding of what is potential in art. Art gives us a sense of what is possible beyond the world as we know it, but often does so by deepening our sense of a wound that we have all experienced, together and individually. In this, perhaps, it offers us the strength to resist false consolation, to continue to insist that there is something more, ‘a better country,’ as the passage reads. Even when it offers us no specific promise, art gives us the sense of this country, filling us with yearning. This yearning may heighten our experience of the wound; but it also guides us toward healing, at times by insisting that true healing is possible, at others by reminding us that we have not yet experienced true healing, and perhaps haven’t even conceived what true healing would be. It helps us to welcome the promise ‘from a distance,’ perhaps; in any case, this is what, in the best moments, the act of writing and filmmaking does for me. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Samuel Gray Anderson is a writer and filmmaker living in Gardena, CA with his wife Susan and son Theodor. He was born in Latrobe, PA, grew up in South Carolina, and studied English at Yale University. He is the co-founder of the production company Almond Tree Films, with which he has written and produced the feature films Munyurangabo (2007), Lucky Life (2010), and Abigail Harm (2012). His work has participated in the Cannes, Toronto, Berlin, and Tribeca film festivals, among others. Website Samuel Gray Anderson About the Artist Samuel Gray Anderson Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art A faint din of glasses chiming, being filled with ice and liquor; distant chatter echoing across a lounge. View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . A faint din of glasses chiming, being filled with ice and liquor; distant chatter echoing across a lounge. Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . This piece by jazz composer Benje Daneman responds to John 15:13 and the theme of "Friend/Community." John 15:13 To Lay Down One's Life By Benje Daneman Credits: Live Recording by Gordon van Gent (GVG Productions) Trumpet by Benje Daneman Piano by Jeremy Siskind Saxophone by Andrew Rathbun Curated by: Jonathon Roberts and Janna Aliese 2012 Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Jesus commands love from his followers (John 15:12, 17). He then goes on to tell them best way to go about doing it – sacrificially loving (John 15:13). This is the backbone to the gospel – the GOOD news that God loves us unconditionally, and we as His people, are called to exude that love to this world. Like any good teacher, Christ didn’t tell us something and then not show it himself. In John 15:13, He not only is explaining the gospel, but He is foretelling His own future – His sacrifice to come, and how that in itself will be the greatest love we can receive when He laid His life down for us. My goal through “To Lay Down One’s Life” was to essentially musically map out the psychological and spiritual path of sacrificial love. The piece starts out with a shell of a chord progression. This specific harmonic movement is prevalent throughout the composition in different forms representing God’s command of “Love” – the driving force behind the sacrificial giving. As the piece progresses into a stoic call and a confident start, it quickly diminishes into a bit more uncontrolled, off-balanced improvisatory section – representing the sting, loss, turmoil and trials that we eventually feel through our sacrifice. Yet, as believers, our eyes should be set on the horizon, our faith in God, during the storm. He is present through the dark and hard moments, even when we don’t feel him (as is the “love” progression throughout the piece. It appears with different tonality and in different meters, but the shell is there mostly throughout). The composition comes to a conclusion as we reach the other side of the valley – a bit beaten and weary from the journey, but wiser, more mature and understanding God and his faithfulness a bit better. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection About Benje Daneman A sought after musician for his personal approach, creative musicality and strong versatility, Daneman got his start professionally in 2007 on a national tour with with Doc Severinsen’s Big Band. Since then he has performed with the world renowned Jose Limon Dance Ensemble, recorded for the Grammy nominated album “Elevation” (HMI Big Band) and has appeared as both a leader and sideman at prestigious venues across the country including The Kennedy Center, Baryshnikov Arts Center, FONT (Festival of New Trumpet) Music Festival and The Iridium. As a composer/arranger, he has received commissions from the United States Air Force Band (in Europe), Dr. Steve Zegree, Spark and Echo Arts and Lutheran Music Missions. His 2015 Artist in Residence for Spark and Echo Arts, is the catalyst for one of his newest projects called Search Party which approaches faith topics through original music, with a band including some of the top musicians on the jazz scene today, including Ike Sturm, Jon Cowherd, Jaimeo Brown and Ashley Daneman. Another new project of Daneman’s, Life Stories, calls upon his deep interest and history in musical storytelling by musically creating a personal and unique experience for the audience by aurally recreating true stories of people places and events. Daneman’s 2013 EP release Estelle’s Farewell Gift features all original compositions featuring Jeremy Siskind, Ashley Daneman and Andrew Rathbun and has been described as “Simple songs that open doors to complex reactions” (David Sumner, Bird Is The Worm). A Teaching Artist for the New York Pops, Daneman is a passionate educator and has led clinics and workshops throughout the country at such institutions as McNally Smith College, Western Michigan University, Concordia University and for the Michigan State Band and Orchestra Association. He is also the co-director of the Jazz & Creative Institute (http://www.jcinstitute.org), which has a mission to inspire artistic development and cultivate creative entrepreneurship for all levels of creative musicians. Benje has attended and holds degrees from Western Michigan University, The Henry Mancini Institute (Los Angeles, CA), and Manhattan School of Music (New York, NY). Benje lives in New York City with his wife, jazz singer-songwriter, Ashley Daneman and daughters, Rivi and Elise. Website Benje Daneman About the Artist Artist in Residence 2015 | Benje Daneman 1 Artist in Residence 2015 | Benje Daneman 2 Artist in Residence 2015 | Benje Daneman 3 Artist in Residence 2015: Benje Daneman Benje Daneman Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . On Saturday, July 14, 2012, three streams of the arts will converge in a collaborative performance as part of the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance’s fifth annual City of Water Day festival on Governor’s Island with: REFLECTIONS ON WATER: NEW WORKS OF MUSIC, DANCE, AND SPOKEN WORD POETRY Isaiah 43:2 Reflections on Water By Credits: Curated by: Spark+Echo Arts 2012 Dance Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Curated by Spark+Echo Arts, Reflections on Water will feature premieres of commissioned works from dancer Emily SoRelle Adams , dancer/choreographer Elizabeth Dishman/Coriolis, along with poet and featured Spark and Echo Artist, Emily Ruth Hazel. (Check out Emily’s recent poem: Word of Mouth .) The program will also join the distinctive voices and styles of other New York City artists, including MiXed Company (Bill Humphrey-saxophone, Jessica Rechner-vocals), acoustic singer/songwriter Phoebe Lyng , singer/songwriter Meaghan Burke (cello, vocals), and poet/multidisciplinary artist Meghan Bechtel. Be refreshed by waves of music and by the flow of words-in-motion with this soul-stirring exploration of the many shapes of water and what it represents in our geographic and internal landscapes. Reflections on Water will be performed at 11AM and at 2PM in Nolan Park on Governor’s Island. Both showings are free admission and open to the public. Visit our facebook event page for more! We are pleased to share some of the work by these artists with you before the event: DANCER EMILY SORELLE ADAMS DANCER/CHOREOGRAPHER ELIZABETH DISHMAN/CORIOLIS SINGER/SONGWRITER PHOEBE LYNG SINGER/SONGWRITER MEAGHAN BURKE JAZZ/GOSPEL MUSICIANS MIXED COMPANY For more about “City of Water Day” visit: http://www.cityofwaterday.org/ Directions to Governors Island: http://www.cityofwaterday.org/directions-to-gi/ Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Website About the Artist Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . Blessing, a composition for wind ensemble by Jonathon Roberts, slowly unfolds over nine minutes; it is a meditation on God's blessings and Numbers 6. Numbers 6:24-26 Blessing By Jonathon Roberts Credits: Musicians: Lawrence University Wind Ensemble Conductor: Robert Levy Recorded: Larry Darling (Director); Live in Memorial Chapel, Appleton, Wisconsin Artist Location: Wisconsin Curated by: Spark+Echo Arts 2005 Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link I love the warm image of God's face shining on us from Numbers 6. I imagine the peace of this blessing as a river, gently moving forward and spreading across the land. Blessing is an instrumental wind ensemble composition featuring a simple theme stretched out over nine minutes, one large crescendo giving way to a river of bells and percussion, slowing drifting away over the horizon and into infinity. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection J onathon Roberts is a composer and sound designer for games, film, theatre, and ensembles. His style grew out of classical and jazz training, and evolved through quality life adventures: touring the country in an RV with a one person theater piece on the Apostle Paul, living in Brooklyn with an improv music ensemble, performing in a downtown NYC absurdist comedy band, and a long stint writing music for the renowned slot machine company, High 5 Games. He has released four albums including the latest, Cities a song cycle personifying biblical cities. He created the popular podcast/web series ComposerDad Vs. Bible , in which ComposerDad accepts intense compositional challenges from a mysterious Bible while out with his kids. He frequently collaborates on music and theater projects with his wife, actor Emily Clare Zempel. They live in Beacon, NY, with their two boys and a tangled box of electrical cords. www.jonathonroberts.com Website Jonathon Roberts About the Artist Loving Arms I Make Tents The Sower Response There Is Room These are My Sons Consider Me a Partner Weakness The Day Is Almost Here Surrogate Babbler Remember Me Prayer How Beautiful I Am a Fool The Constant Ecclesiastes Cows Fools for Christ More Than Rubies Only a Few Years Will Pass Dear Friend Jonathon Roberts Other Works By Download the full score. Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

When the Lord Gave Us the Land (triptych) So Shall Your Descendants Be I See Him but Not Now The Mountain of the House of The Lord Loading Video . . . Artist Nicora Gangi explores the journey of redemption of Rahab in this mixed media piece responding to Joshua 6:22-24 in the first work of her three-part series: When the Lord Gives Us the Land. Joshua 6:22-24 When the Lord Gives Us The Land By Nicora Gangi Credits: Curated by: Spark+Echo Arts 2023 Paper Collage Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link Artist Nicora Gangi explores the journey of redemption of Rahab in this mixed media piece responding to Joshua 6:22-24 in the first work of her three-part series: When the Lord Gives Us the Land. To see the individual pieces in this triptych, click on any of the links below: So Shall Your Descendants Be I See Him but Not Now The Mountain of the House of The Lord Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Nicora Gangi was educated at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA (BFA 1974 and MFA 1976). She was a Professor of Art at Syracuse University for 29 years. Gangi has been awarded many Grand Prize and First Place awards and grants. She has been and continues to be published in numerous artist’s books on pastel paintings. She has lectured regionally and nationally as a visiting artist at universities and artist’s guilds. She is represented by: Edgewood Gallery (Syracuse, NY), and Gangi Studio (Winter Garden, FL ). Website Nicora Gangi About the Artist The Mountain of the House of The Lord I See Him but Not Now So Shall Your Descendants Be This One The Body without the Spirit | 1 The Body without the Spirit | 2 The Body without the Spirit | 3 The Sealed Ones Peace with God The Everlasting Protective Love of God Our Father I See Him but Not Now The Mountain of the House of The Lord Paneled and Ruins Series The Harvest Spirit of God-The Spirit Hovering Memories Lies Fool Dance Your Truth from the Great Congregation Psalm 18 Sound of Their Wings Psalm 16 Kiss the Son EAST, WEST, NORTH & SOUTH AT HIS TABLE Nicora Gangi Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . Writer Laura Eve Engel brings us a piece in response Psalm 107:4-9. Psalms 107:4-9 I AM SMALL By Laura Eve Engel Credits: Curated by: Kent Shaw 2015 Poetry Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link I’m drawn, something like spiritually, to the vast landscapes–oceans, deserts–that seem to have the capacity, just by existing, just because we know they’re out there, to recall for us our smallness. One need not have been lost in the actual desert–though I have been, sort of–to come upon that feeling of relative size. In stuff-I-read-in-childhood terms, it’s Douglas Adams’ Total Perspective Vortex that is raised by the Biblical images of the desert wanderer: a reminder, among the galaxies, that YOU ARE HERE, and that “HERE” is imperceptible is an understatement. But this passage is, it seems to me, about expressions of gratitude, and when it comes to expressions of gratitude I’m a wanderer in the desert. I’m pummeled by a big wave. As a Jew when I offer a traditional prayer it’s often not in my native language and I feel relief at not always knowing what it is I’m saying. Where expressions of real spiritual depth are concerned I’m most comfortable when I’m a little bit confused, not able to catch all the language, and I can approach even my own ignorance with something like awe. I like feeling small in that way, I think. It’s a way of feeling part of a bigger and not always understandable arrangement, which has always seemed to me something like fact. But I also like feeling like a person, and sometimes boundless exaltation like the kind expressed in this psalm seems to me so much like the vastness of the desert, so calibrated to illustrate my individual human smallness, that it threatens to obliterate the self. That feels dangerous and, in the wrong hands, exploitable. I think I may be temperamentally averse to the pure exaltation this psalm and others prescribe. But it also strikes me that making a meaningful expression of gratitude is distinctly and necessarily not always about my own comfort. Reading and responding to these verses was an opportunity for me to consider smallness and the temptations and aversions that accompany one’s being faced with it, as well as how insisting on the boundaries and bigness of a self inside the infinite is an act that’s circumscribed by unclarity, and failure, and beauty. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Laura Eve Engel is the author of Things That Go (Octopus Books). The recipient of fellowships from the Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center, the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing and the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, her work can be found in The Awl , Best American Poetry , Boston Review , The Nation , PEN America , Tin House and elsewhere. She's in a band called The Old Year. Website Laura Eve Engel About the Artist WISHBONE Laura Eve Engel Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art And still unclear is the quality of my lostness View Full Written Work I AM SMALL by Laura Eve Engel And still unclear is the quality of my lostness to the visible stars more visible in the desert great literature love places its wanderers under a slow tongue where fear grows plantwild the dark makes forms unknowable I give thanks for not in this dry moment having to answer for myself forage for wheat beneath the sky 's great bravery I must be a nettle or else a tiny trophy bound by sand these feet from time to time displaced gathered up where I was found traversing my actual steps a length of its own brief name Close Loading Video . . . And still unclear is the quality of my lostness Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . Writer Zhubin Parang offers a comedic sketch in response to Luke 8:17 and the theme of "Lies." Luke 8:17 Lies By Zhubin Parang Credits: Curated by: Michael Markham 2013 Comedy Sketch Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link This sketch is inspired by Luke 8:17: "For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad" (KJV). A couple who is pressed to disclose all their financial assets for the sake of their son learns this the hard way. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Zhubin Parang is an Emmy award-winning writer for The Daily Show With Jon Stewart. His writing has been featured in McSweeney’s, The Onion, and The Morning News, and can be found at www.zhubinparang.com . Website Zhubin Parang About the Artist Zhubin Parang Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . We are pleased to release a new composition by musician Meaghan Burke, a response to Jesus' foretelling of his second coming in Matthew 24 in which he describes to his the disciples that all the horrors of war and famine will be a mere prelude to the sorrows of the apocalypse - only "the beginning of birth pangs." Matthew 24:1-14 A few concerns concerning the second coming By Meaghan Burke Credits: Artist Location: Brooklyn, New York Curated by: James Hall 2012 Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link This image of birth led me to imagine the chagrin that earth must feel to be told that all the catastrophes it suffers, from earthquakes to civil war, are nothing in comparison to what will come. I envisoned the earth as a mother unable to believe that, after suffering over and over and over again, there is any suffering left to spare. The song alternates between the perspective of this weary world, forced to destroy the children it has borne, and that of a human being, with the very human concerns of being separated from those she loves (“what if I am taken and you are left?”) and being deceived by the so-called “false prophets” (“what if I see Him where I’m not supposed to?”). The final chorus asks, simply, in an anguished bluesy lament, why anyone or anything would build such a beautiful thing as this world, only to destroy it. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection Meaghan Burke ’s debut album Other People’s Ghosts (for cello and voice) sounds like what would happen if if Jacqueline Du Pré were raised on rock and roll, and folk, and cabaret, and blues, and free jazz, and spent too long in Vienna. Or if Tom Waits picked up the cello, drank several pots of coffee, and had a sex change. Whatever that means. Above all, Other People’s Ghosts is about stories – of bedbugs, of bedfellows, of things like love – and Burke’s rich yet vulnerable, smoky-toned voice and deep, growling cello keep these stories playing over and over in our heads long after the last track is finished. Website Meaghan Burke About the Artist Meaghan Burke Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . Download Full Written Work