Article January 1, 1955 Issue

THE SPIRITUAL NATURE OF ART

INA PERHAM STORY

In the divinely inspired account of creation, which is the basis of Christian Science reasoning, the spiritual nature of man and of all things is established by the Word of God. The unfolding order of this real creation is depicted in the first chapter of Genesis, and the completeness and perfection of it are declared in the last verse, where we read, "And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." Thus we may conclude that beauty and art are the work of His hands, pronounced by His wisdom as "very good."

No sense of a finite, personal creation is indicated in this spiritual record. In its entirety it is the revelation of one infinite God, good, seeing and sanctioning His own expression as the reflection of Himself, the revelation of God, Soul, feeling and experiencing the satisfaction of His own all-encompassing nature; the revelation of Love, joyous in its own grace and charm of being. Spiritual awareness of these facts is the basis of true art, for true feeling is the innate recognition of and response to Truth. From this approach inspiration appears as one continuous, harmonious action, or unfolding of light or understanding, and is man's by reflection. In the light of inspiration color shines in glorious hues, as the vividness of the idea; and form takes its beauty and variety from the distinctness of the idea.

In the field of art one may hear in the classrooms, in conversations among artists, that a painting or drawing has a "spiritual quality." However, the writer did not find that the word spiritual thus used had a definite meaning for her until she understood God as Spirit, Soul, the only Life, Truth, and Love. He unfolds His idea as the evidence of Life, and this unfoldment is manifested in human activity through Christ.

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