Joy And Sadness Of Change Amanda Grove Loading Video . . . Illustrator Amanda Grove plays with colors and imagery as she brings together a dichotomy of emotions within her piece reflecting on Ezra 3:11-13. Ezra 3:11-13 The Joy and Sadness of Change By Amanda Grove ​ Credits: ​ Curated by: Rebecca Testrake 2020 ​ Watercolor and pen tools on Adobe Sketch (on iPad pro) with an Apple pencil. Edited in Photoshop Digital Art Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link ​ This passage immediately stood out to me because of the strong visuals it evokes without having to pick apart each verse. I think we can all relate to the emotions described in the passage: The feelings of joy and sadness that change or loss can bring about. There is a sense of nostalgia and loyalty for the places we've come to know as constants in our lives, and when those places are taken away and replaced with something new, we can feel an incredible sense of anger and loss. Even if the change is necessary. When thinking about how to depict these emotions I was drawn to the parallels of the gloominess of rain in early Spring. It can seem monotonous and unnecessary at times, but it brings forth the most beautiful life. I chose to depict these emotions as a torrential rain surrounding the temple to represent the sadness felt by the people, and the bright colorful flowers to represent the joy. And of course the rainbow to represent hope for the future. The temple is caught in the middle of these strong outpourings of grief and glee. The design of the temple was inspired by a model that resides in the Israel museum in Jerusalem. The flowers are all native to Israel. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection ​ Amanda Grove is an Illustrator/Designer and owner of Golden Grove Paper based in Ashland, OR. She creates greeting cards, vinyl stickers, art prints and more based on her designs. Plants and nature serve as her main forms of inspiration and she uses them to create patterns and shapes in her work. Using traditional tools on a digital platform, she strives to stretch the natural elements of our world to create a surreal and otherworldly interpretation of the things she loves. You can check out more of her work at Golden Grove Shop Website Amanda Grove About the Artist Amanda Grove Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art ​ View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . ​ Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . As the third work in a collection curated by Shann Ray, featuring the works of Vanessa Kay, Mary Jane Nealon and Shann Ray; this short story by Alan Heathcock explores theme of "Light and Darkness" from the perspective of Isaiah 61:3. Isaiah 61:3 Cheer By Alan Heathcock ​ Credits: ​ Curated by: Shann Ray 2013 ​ ​ Short Story Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link ​ I watched a documentary about a man who lived as a prisoner of war for a number of years, each day bound in a little hut, very little daylight, very little human interaction. How did he survive? He survived by the strength of his inner life, and that made me contemplate the fragility of our bodies versus the power of everything that is us that is not our bodies. The garment of praise overcoming the spirit of despair in this case is the recognition that our strength cannot not be diminished by physical means, as that place of truth that resides behind our eyes cannot be touched or slapped or maimed. Instead of a prisoner of war, I decided to use a cheerleader as the vehicle for this story because I felt people often separate themselves from the exceptional despair of the world, as if that POW has nothing to do with them and their lives. But if a cheerleader could be touched by despair then it could touch anyone, which, of course, is as true as anything else I could write. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection ​ Alan Heathcock ’s fiction has been published in many of America’s top magazines and journals. VOLT, a collection of stories, was a “Best Book 2011″ selection from numerous newspapers and magazines, including GQ, Publishers Weekly, Salon, the Chicago Tribune, and Cleveland Plain Dealer, was named as a New York Times Editors’ Choice, selected as a Barnes and Noble Best Book of the Month, as well as a finalist for the Barnes and Noble Discover Prize. Heathcock has won a Whiting Award, the GLCA New Writers Award, a National Magazine Award, has been awarded fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and is currently a Literature Fellow for the state of Idaho. A Native of Chicago, he teaches fiction writing at Boise State University. Website Alan Heathcock About the Artist Alan Heathcock Other Works By As the third work in a collection curated by Shann Ray, featuring the works of Vanessa Kay , Mary Jane Nealon and Shann Ray ; this short story by Alan Heathcock explores theme of “Light and Darkness” from the perspective of Isaiah 61:3: and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. Related Information View More Art Make More Art The other girls shot their fists in the air, kicked high, went seamlessly through the routine. Shell couldn’t remember the cheer. Her mind was a mess. View Full Written Work Cheer by Alan Heathcock The other girls shot their fists in the air, kicked high, went seamlessly through the routine. Shell couldn’t remember the cheer. Her mind was a mess. A buzzer sounded from the scorer’s table. The boys broke their huddles. Shell knew all those in the green uniforms: Lester and Billy James and Harold and John Censia and John Defenthaller. She’d kissed the lips on three of these faces. The other girls clapped and shouted, now off the court and by the double-doors. Shell ran from center court, bumped through the green jerseys and towards the cheer line, and Mrs. Marlene shouted her name, then grabbed her elbow and dragged her from the gymnasium. “What’s going on with you, Shell?” Mrs. Marlene asked. Shell touched her own lips. “I don’t know.” “You on your moon?” “Moon?” Mrs. Marlene glanced downward. “ Your moon ?” Shell shook her head. “You sick?” “No.” “You’re just acting so strange.” “Oh,” Shell said. “Well…” She looked back into the gymnasium. The teams positioned themselves for the jump-ball. She knew she couldn’t say what was on her mind because cheerleaders don’t speak of such things, but she couldn’t shake the woman’s face, darker than her own and scarred from acid. Her husband had thrown acid on her. Shell didn’t know why the husband had done what he had, because she couldn’t bear to read to the end of the article. Why didn’t matter. People always wanted to know why . Shell had seen the woman’s face, the blood and bone where the skin was gone, even her bold eyes shot through with red. It all terrified Shell. She shut tight her eyes and closed her hands into fists. Why, why, why… “Good lord, girlie,” Mrs. Marlene finally said. “Whatever it is, you’d best go shake it off.” *** Shell walked the vacant school halls. At the end of the building farthest from the gymnasium, a cold breeze wafted out from an open classroom. Shell turned into the cold, pushed in through the open door. The room smelled of formaldehyde. She switched on the lights and there were rows of high tables with burners and sinks. A skeleton by the blackboard wore a red and white cap. A far window was tilted open. Wet snow blew in from the darkness outside. Shell crossed to the window. On the ledge by the window sat a terrarium coated in frost. She stuck her face in the frigid draft, lifted off the terrarium lid. One lone frog–no bigger than her fist, yellow spots on its brown body–lay on a bed of glistening cabbage. The frog didn’t struggle in her grasp. It was cold and hard, very much dead, its eyes black pebbles flecked with gold. Its slick skin was beautiful, sparkling almost, the muscle of it hind legs so gracefully curved. What a magnificent creature, Shell thought. “How do you work?” she said to the frog’s tiny face. *** The frog’s miniature organs were the color of burlap. It wasn’t at all as she’d imagined. It had been an impulse, a strange inclination that had overcome her, and Shell stood, scalpel in hand, and thought cutting the skin of a living creature should be more difficult. How does a frog ever live a day with such thin skin? How does anything live a single day? She could hardly imagine it had once hopped and croaked and eaten flies. Maybe it thought, too. Of course it did. It had to know pond water felt nice, flies tasted good. But this thing, this lifeless fragile thing on the table was so different. Shell pictured herself on the table, just her body, her delicate skin and organs. Just a thing . Sometimes people are things to each other. Then Shell remembered the woman’s scarred face, a face of ravaged clay, like something melted, and she sobbed then her body shook and she began to weep because she never wanted to be a thing to anybody, or to treat anybody like a thing , and she left the frog flayed on the table and quickly shut the window and dashed out of the classroom, arms pumping, her sneakers padding on the hall’s checkerboard tiles, faster, faster. *** The fieldhouse steamed with sweat and breath warmed in the guts, the noise of hands clapping, feet stomping bleechers, air forced out of lungs and into screams. Boys running, jumping. John Defenthaller drove to the basket, leapt and dunked the ball. He landed and pumped his fists and howled. The crowd howled. Shell wiped her sweaty brow, set a palm against her thumping heart. There’s such a difference between something alive and dead, Shell mused, and in that moment she understood that difference as mostly being everything that is you that is not your body. That’s what makes you alive. That thing in you that says to howl, to want and love. That thing no one can touch or harm. You’re never a thing if people know that part of you. Shell felt herself stirred, potently aware of that thing brimming behind her eyes, what her mother might call a soul, and an eerie accompanying feeling of her body being nothing beyond bones and blood and skin. Mrs. Marlene came beside her and put her arm around Shell’s shoulder. “You okay, girlie?” Shell smiled, nodded, and ran off clapping to join the others. Close Loading Video . . . The other girls shot their fists in the air, kicked high, went seamlessly through the routine. Shell couldn’t remember the cheer. Her mind was a mess. Download Full Written Work

Loading Video . . . "We Were Like Those Who Dream," a beautiful video work collaboration between musician Joshua Stamper, dancer Lea Fulton, and video artist Ben Stamper responds to the theme of "Dancing" from Psalm 126:1. Psalms 126:1​ We Were Like Those Who Dream By Joshua Stamper, Lea Fulton, Ben Stamper ​ Credits: Music by Joshua Stamper Cello by Daniel Delaney Clarinet by Amy Christmas Halteman Guitar by Joshua Stamper Dance by Lea Fulton Photography and Editing by Ben Stamper Curated by: Evan Mazunik 2013 ​ ​ ​ Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link ​ Joshua Stamper: Part of what's always struck me about the first verse in Psalm 126 is the idea of renewed capacity to dream, to hope, to imagine--a capacity was there originally, but then lost, and now surprisingly, is being restored. I think in these situations, though joy is felt in the extreme, it's delicate; similar to the experience happening upon a deer in a field. Your breath catches and you suddenly stop, for fear that the animal might startle and run away; you drink deep this grace and beauty, but slowly...and quietly. Similarly, in thinking about renewed joy, renewed cause for celebration, renewed capacity to dream--all the usual markers are there...laughter, dancing, levity, etc., but also an awareness of the moment, a desire to take it all in. You dance slower, more carefully, because you don't want to startle the joy that you're now experiencing. Add to that, the peculiarity and strangeness of being able to dream and dance again, stretching muscles in mind and body that have been unused for so long. Lea Fulton: I'm influenced heavily by the shape of the space designated for my dancing and this other worldly setting definitely brought clarity to some early ideas for interpreting this verse through physicality. In the performing of the movement itself on location, I was asking myself a series of questions and letting the body's innate knowledge answer, or at least discuss. How does the body respond to liminality- the space between the original experience and the restoration of this experience which has become a dream? How does memory shape our body? How is our desire for God, and our knowledge of His quality of being everywhere and in every thing, shaped by our desire for our own contentment through the attainment of a personal vision? Can the body be at rest in its tension between two worlds, even when we let things slip through our own fingers? Ben Stamper: Dreams owe their existence to reality Hope is born out of displacement Displacement has to do with unwilling Placement has to do with here and there In exile, time is a weapon used to consume the generations it once brought forth Place is now as large as the body filling There are many in-betweens but one here, one there Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection ​ Joshua Stamper has been a restless composer and remarkably active collaborator for over twenty years. His work reflects a deep interest in the intersection points between seemingly disparate musics, and a profound love for the intimacy, charm, and potency that chamber music provides. He studied music composition and playwriting at Hampshire College and worked extensively with Pulitzer-prize winning composer Lewis Spratlan and Rome-prize winner David Sanford. Equally at home in the jazz, classical, avant- garde, and indie/alternative worlds, he has collaborated with hundreds of artists in both live and recording situations, in the United States and in Europe. He has worked with such luminaries as Sufjan Stevens, Danielson, Twin Sister, Robyn Hitchcock, Emil Nikolaisen (Serena Maneesh), Kevin Shea (Mostly Other People Do The Killing), and Rogerio Boccato (Kenny Garrett, Ben Allison). He worked as an orchestral arranger and session musician for Sony/BMG and for independent labels Domino, Dead Oceans, Important Records, Sounds Familyre, Smalltown Supersound, and others. In the past three years, Stamper has recorded two albums under his own name Wend and Interstitials , and his new album the skin, the sea, the sound is set for release in fall 2013. www.joshuastamper.com Lea Fulton is obsessed with stories and the re-telling of them through visual and physical media. Originally from Southern California, she migrated east 10 years ago and finds New York City a stellar place to collect these stories. Based in Brooklyn, some of her storytelling adventures have included a collaboration with Ryan Ross that culminated in a piece of movable theater performed at the Philly Fringe Festival 2008, a dancefilm collaboration "Chloes" with dancer Stephanie Miracle and filmmaker Greg King that was honored in the Dance on Camera Film Festival 2010 and a multi-disciplinary interactive dance theater piece by a group of 13 artists in an old factory in Keane Valley, NY in summer 2012. Being consistently drawn to the medium of film, Lea has choreographed music videos for electronic music artist, Nadia Ali and indie-rock group, Apollo Run in addition to performing in Animal Collective’s video for “Summertime Clothes” and The Form's "Fire to the Ground". She has also created dance with Heather McArdle, Faye Driscoll, Christine Suarez, Kate Watson-Wallace, Laura Peterson, Deborah Karp and Jillian Pena. She's currently working with Motley Dance and Alexandra Beller/Dances. She has taught a dance workshop - "Community Building through Movement"- at Wheaton College and in Mittersill, Austria at the Schloss Mittersill Arts Conference and continues to teach through the medium of yoga in underserved populations and for non-profits in NYC, including Restore NYC and Our Place Wellness Cafe. She holds a B.A in Interdisciplinary Studies from Wheaton College and is in pursuit of a Master's degree at SUNY Empire State in Movement Therapy and Trauma Studies in conjunction with a Somatic Movement Therapy Certification. Ben Stamper is fan award-winning independent filmmaker based in New Jersey.With a background in fine art and music, Ben's intuitive approach to imagery and sound has led him to a broad range of human interests, from exploring remote villages in the Amazon to the complexities of human trafficking across India. Ben is currently working on a feature documentary about an autistic artist and his transition into adulthood. www.benstamperpictures.com Website Joshua Stamper, Lea Fulton, Ben Stamper About the Artist Joshua Stamper, Lea Fulton, Ben Stamper Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art ​ View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . ​ Download Full Written Work

pourcho_return-1_feat.jpg Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) "Vision Of The Horseman: Zechariah 1:7-17" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Vision Of A Man With A Measuring Line: Zechariah 2" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Vision Of A Golden Lampstand: Zechariah 4 Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Visions Of A Flying Scroll And Woman In A Basket: Zechariah 5" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “The Crown And The Temple: Zechariah 6:9-15" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “but, They Did Not Hear: Zechariah 1:4" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Visions Of Four Chariots: Zechariah 6-8” (Detail) Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Vision Of Four Horns And Craftsman: Zechariah 1:18-21" Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Vision Of Joshua High Priest” (Motif 1) Katheryn Pourcho,return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) "Vision Of Four Chariots” (Motif 1) Katheryn Pourcho, Return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) “Vision Of Joshua High Priest” (Motif 2) Katheryn Pourcho,return: Visions Of Zechariah 1-6 (Detail) "Vision Of Four Chariots” (Motif 2) Loading Video . . . This incredible work by artist Katheryn Pourcho incorporates medieval and current components of her faith tradition while responding in depth to the passage of Zechariah 1-6. Zechariah 1:1-6 Return: Visions of Zechariah 1-6 By Katheryn Pourcho ​ Credits: ​ Curated by: Laura Pittenger 2018 24 x 24 inches Wood, Ceramic, Oil, Acrylic, Graphite Sculptural Tapestry Primary Scripture Loading primary passage... Loading Passage Reference... Share This Art: Facebook X (Twitter) WhatsApp LinkedIn Pinterest Copy Link ​ A memory of mine became 25 years old the day this illumination was due. I remember sitting in the back of the family mini-van at a Philips 66 when my ears were opened. In the mind of my five-year-old self, I understood that God was beckoning me to join Him, and I took my first step of faith. It has taken me years to understand the nature of the promise given to the little girl at the gas station. Reading through the visions of Zechariah did not simply reframe my understanding of my young admission of faith, it restructured my faith on God's covenantal love. "Return to me, says the LORD of hosts, and I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts" (Zechariah 1:3). What seemed at first to me to be a consumeristic bargain for obedience—"you do this, and I'll do that"—quickly dissolved as I entered into Zechariah's visions. Here I saw a God who was not only capable of keeping His side of the covenant with Israel's forefathers, but this God was also willing to take on the complete work of relational restoration. This inequitable promise simply called God's exiles to return home. I chose earthy textures as the backdrop to the fantastic imagery of Zechariah's visions. The ceramic tiles reflect on the cyclical condition of humanity ("But they did not hear," Zechariah 1:4). I used scaly texture to allude to the Fall accounted in Genesis . Zechariah's visions recorded in chapters 1-6 are depicted on the cut wood. I referenced motifs and color from Giotto's paintings in the Scrovegni Chapel (c. 1305). The four visions painted on circle woodcuts: "Vision of the Horseman, Zechariah 1:7-17," "Vision of a Man with a Measuring Line, Zechariah 2," "Vision of a Golden Lampstand: Zechariah 4," and "Visions of a Flying Scroll and Woman in a Basket, Zechariah 5." Both the "Vision of the Four Chariots, Zechariah 6:1-8" and "Vision of Joshua the High Priest, Zechariah 3" are featured on the border woodcuts. I formed four horns out of clay an placed them at each corner. These contain a dual meaning. As I reflected on the four horns cast down in Zechariah 1:18-21, I recalled the four horns placed on the corners of the altar of burnt offering in the tabernacle as a place of restoration. The final vision in chapter six is depicted on the square panel central to the composition. The vision points to a future priest-king who would set all things right between the returned exiles and the LORD. Here I depicted a crown with the seven-eyed stone symbolizing the removal of iniquity (Zechariah 3:8,9). I likened the silver of the crown to the Temple, and a tree rises out of the crown representing the Messianic King. In addition to referencing Giotto, I listened to Pastor Timothy Keller's sermons while working in my studio. These teachings, in particular, helped me process the radical call to return found in Zechariah: " A Covenant Relationship ," " How to Change ," " The Prodigal Sons ." The Bible Project 's video commentary on the book of Zechariah also aided my comprehension of the visions found in chapters 1-6. Spark Notes The Artist's Reflection ​ Katheryn Pourcho is a visual artist and elementary art teacher based in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is an avid plein air painter and art history enthusiast. Her artistic influences range anywhere from Van Gogh and Giotto to the Beatles and Bach. She collaborates with artists at her church to create liturgical art, and is currently studying Theology and Art through Fuller Seminary. To view her work visit www.katherynpourcho.com Website Katheryn Pourcho About the Artist Katheryn Pourcho Other Works By Related Information View More Art Make More Art ​ View Full Written Work Close Loading Video . . . ​ Download Full Written Work

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