Art and Religion

TheLightWithin said:
Fashion and hairstyles are art forms too.
In many religious traditions, women wear headcoverings, and in some, elaborate hairstyles (Pentecostal/Apostolic churches)
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Head Covering Styles: 25 Beautiful Ideas For Head Coverings - Beautiful Life

Head Covering Styles, for Mennonites, Amish, Conservative Christians, or Jewish Orthodox. Head coverings, tichels, veils, turbans, headscarves, and mitpachats.
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Catholic or Orthodox Mennonite or Holiness Pentecostal/Apostolic

I don't practice any of this myself, though my hair is pretty long. I'm not part of such a religious subculture, and it's far too conservative for me, but I have always found the appearance of it to be beautiful. As a little girl, not raised very religious and on the outside looking in, not knowing anything of the theological implication of it, I thought it was beautiful and feminine, exotic and cool.
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The glorious colors reflected in all the sarees at the temple on Diwali is beautiful...

Clothing in general strike me as an spiritual, if not religious, art form. There's just something about a piece that's either handmade, or reflective of another time or place, that I find makes me feel a connection with the greater world around me. And the artful combination of colors, fabrics, and styles can become an expression all its own.
 
So many things, and various –

The night sky, on a clear night sans light pollution ... desolate moorland and marshes ...

Here's a weird one: certain rhythms resonate deep inside. I'm sure if I investigated, I could nail it, but I know a definite part is repetition (eg Philip Glass) but I once remember sitting in a car in a carwash and having a moment when the rhythm of the brushes hit that certain point – I've had a close effect with machinery, too ... every now and then a piece of music will do it ...

Corsican polyphony & Gregorian Chant, Tibetan throat-singing ...

Islamic art, yes, but typography ... fabulous!

Bonkers fact: I forget the details, but an artist, later in a later Renaissance, was painting a picture of the Blessed Virgin. He had draped his model in blue silk, a material only available through Islamic traders from the Orient. Around the hems were silver filigree pattern, which he copied so precisely that readers of Arabic could read it! – and of course, it was an Islamic text!

Salvador Dali – Christ of St John of the Cross:

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although this by a family friend is also a favourite ...

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In all things ... the liminal.
 
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Thomas said:
Corsican polyphony & Gregorian Chant, Tibetan throat-singing ...
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I just recently discovered Tibetan throat singing... awesome stuff!
Thomas said:
Islamic art, yes, but typography ... fabulous!

Bonkers fact: I forget the details, but an artist, later in a later Renaissance, was painting a picture of the Blessed Virgin. He had draped his model in blue silk, a material only available through Islamic traders from the Orient. Around the hems were silver filigree pattern, which he copied so precisely that readers of Arabic could read it! – and of course, it was an Islamic text!
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That is one awesome garment!
 
JustGeorge said:
What are some of your favorite religious works of art?
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Thank you JG, this is one of my favourite subjects. My list is big but for a taste I will mention medieval cathedrals, eastern orthodox art, Sufi poetry and depictions of the Green Man.

A few years ago, I was on a workshop in Scotland. A local woman had made a study of keening as was once practiced in the highlands. She offered to give a demonstration one evening and out of interest I went along.

What I heard was hauntingly beautiful and deeply moving. It tugged at heartstrings that I was unaware of possessing. I truly felt that I was in the presence of something very ancient. Such a shame that this is so little known.
 
Leveller said:
Thank you JG, this is one of my favourite subjects. My list is big but for a taste I will mention medieval cathedrals, eastern orthodox art, Sufi poetry and depictions of the Green Man.
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All things I can enjoy, too. The sculptures on temples is another favorite, too...
Leveller said:
A few years ago, I was on a workshop in Scotland. A local woman had made a study of keening as was once practiced in the highlands. She offered to give a demonstration one evening and out of interest I went along.

What I heard was hauntingly beautiful and deeply moving. It tugged at heartstrings that I was unaware of possessing. I truly felt that I was in the presence of something very ancient. Such a shame that this is so little known.
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I don't think I'm familiar with keening.
 
JustGeorge said:
I don't think I'm familiar with keening.
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There is little on the internet and some does not really capture what I experienced. The performer was Madge Bray who does have some material on youtube.

There is this piece from Ireland, which reminds me of the evening with Madge.
 
Leveller said:
There is little on the internet and some does not really capture what I experienced. The performer was Madge Bray who does have some material on youtube.

There is this piece from Ireland, which reminds me of the evening with Madge.
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Hauntingly beautiful...
 
Thinking of beautiful handiwork such as quilting as an art form:
My mom used to make beautiful quilts.
My mom was not religious in the conventional sense and held a deep distrust of organized religion.
However, when she learned of the idea that Mennonites put a "humility piece" or "God piece" in each quilt, she admired the practice.
The idea is that Mennonite or Amish quilters deliberately put a mistake in each quilt, as only God can be perfect.
I looked it up, and the idea may be a myth rather than an actual cultural practice.
But my mom did make beautiful handcrafts, quilts and rugs, and I do still have a few.
I wish I had managed to keep more of her work.
 
TheLightWithin said:
I just finished the movie "Along With the Gods" last night and started to watch the sequel.
It's a Korean movie about the afterlife.
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Replying to myself here:
I just finished the second movie.
There are supposed to be two more movies but I don't know if they've released them or even made them yet or if they are actually going to.
I don't know if anybody else has seen "Along With The Gods" but I definitely recommend them.
The stories, themes, and characters are complex and interesting.
Decision making, memory, love, grief, loss, regret, revenge, and forgiveness are all well explored themes.
The movie is all in Korean so it is essential to have closed caps.
There were still some things I did not understand which may have been the complexity of the storytelling, but may have been cultural or theological in nature. For example I'm not sure whether or not the outcomes for some of the characters were consistent with what little was really explained about the rules. But viewers who know the culture or (what I assume to be) Buddhist doctrine may find no inconsistency at all.
I hope somebody else here will watch it soon and we can talk about it!
 
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