THE SPIRITUAL NATURE OF ART
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.
In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" Mary Baker Eddy gives us a vital statement concerning the spiritual nature of art under the marginal heading "Ever-appearing creation." It reads (p. 507 ): "Infinite Mind creates and governs all, from the mental molecule to infinity. This divine Principle of all expresses Science and art throughout His creation, and the immortality of man and the universe. Creation is ever appearing, and must ever continue to appear from the nature of its inexhaustible source." In this scientific appraisal, art as the expression of Principle is effortless. How then do we account for the struggle the so-called creative artist often experiences? Is it not because he is working from a wrong premise, considering himself a mortal, a separate entity, with creative powers of his own, and is not this an infringement on the prerogative of Deity?
Two fallacies resulting from the premise that there are creators many are these: that the artist thinks he must express himself as a mortal, and that he must be original. Both are impediments to being himself, God's reflection, and they tend to limit and obstruct a natural flow of spontaneous ideas from divine Principle, Love, to human consciousness.
Emphasizing throughout her writings that spiritual creation is the effect of one infinite cause, Mrs. Eddy states very clearly that man is not a creator. She says (Science and Health, p. 305 ), "The verity that God's image is not a creator, though he reflects the creation of Mind, God, constitutes the underlying reality of reflection." Then she illumines the statement by quoting Jesus' words, "'Verily, verily I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.'" Through this true sense of humility, which Jesus so wonderfully exemplified, the field of expression is open for us to see Principle demonstrating its own unlimited variety.
Several years ago the writer was working on a canvas that for a matter of weeks seemed to present a problem of painting which was impossible to solve. Reluctance to leave the canvas at the end of each day was as insistent as the impulse to tackle it again the next morning, but she found no satisfactory solution. This process of trial and error, which involved a great sense of frustration, went on until she awoke to the mesmeric nature of this so-called force, or human will, and decided to have none of it.
On the morning of this awakening she turned to her books on Christian Science, instead of again going to work on the canvas. She did this with joy and with a sense of freedom from the notion that she had to express herself or solve a painting problem. She saw that by following the divine demand (Gen. 1:3 ), "Let there be light," she was virtually acknowledging that the kingdom of heaven is within; that is, the divine Mind was her light, imparting understanding right then and that this consciousness gave her dominion, in spite of mortal suggestions to the contrary. She continued studying until about three o'clock in the afternoon; then without previously planning it she went to the studio and started painting. In forty-five minutes the canvas was finished. She had permitted the truth of God's allness to be the source and substance of her thought, with satisfactory results.
This experience hints our divine capabilities and possibilities when we recognize that God, Mind, does His own expressing. Mrs. Eddy writes (Science and Health, p. 323 ): "Beholding the infinite tasks of truth, we pause,—wait on God. Then we push onward, until boundless thought walks enraptured, and conception unconfined is winged to reach the divine glory." Thus we may conclude that true art derives from Soul and is described in terms of rhythm, balance, movement, beauty, and order and is shown forth in whatever we do. It may appear humanly as the balanced, rhythmical arrangement of a printed page, a musical composition, or a dance form.
The Psalmist sang (Ps. 50:2 ), "Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined." We may paraphrase it this way: From the summit of pure consciousness, God unfolds the infinite Soul-felt beauty of His own being. Truly this signifies the spiritual nature of art.
