An Unfinished Work of Art

creative arts newsletter - may 2005

Paul Gardner once said, “A painting is never finished.” The scriptures constantly refer to God as a creator. The ultimate painter if you will. I often imagine God as a cosmic Michaelangelo with a paintbrush in his hand constantly making changes and revisions, adding texture and color, and stepping back to look at his painting and smiling, not because it’s finished, but because he takes great delight in the creative process.

C.S. Lewis constantly referred to the fact that we were all made in the image of God, and everything we do, everything, comes from a beautiful desire that he already has. Think about it. Genesis refers to a God who went a on a little creative binge and designed what we call the universe. If you can remember back to your childhood, can you reminisce about the excitement you had when you were finished with your first watercolor? There seemed to be a passion to create. The education philosophy for elementary aged students now revolves around the “creative learning” process. God has instilled in us a passion to create, because he is creative.

Like I said at the beginning of this article, God is creating you as you sit here and read these squiggles on this page. In the early years of greco art, being commissioned to paint a human subject was one of the highest honors you could receive. The process of a human subject painting was a long and arduous one. The subject would have to remain perfectly still for months on end as the painter worked his mess of lines and colors into depth, character, and beauty. I sometimes wonder if God is asking me to “please sit still, I’m not finished”.