Center Art Gallery
Spoelhof College Center
3201 Burton Street SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49546
(616) 526-6271
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Space & Spirit
Artistic Impressions of Sacred Place
January 5-29, 2005
From January 5-29, the Center Art Gallery at Calvin College presents Space &
Spirit: Artistic Impressions of Sacred Place, a juried exhibition featuring
the work of over 50 different artists from across the United States, Canada,
and Europe. The exhibition consists of a wide variety of painting, photography,
fiber, printmaking, artist’s books, mixed media, and sculpture, drawn
from nearly 350 entries.
Throughout history, humans have responded to the natural instinct to explore
and identify sacred space. This impulse is most evident in the physical places
that communities have set apart and shaped for religious purposes. Mosques,
burial sites, cathedrals, road-side shrines, altars, hill-top monuments, temples,
and churches all attest to the common desire for tangible sacred places. For
some, an enclosed place can fulfill a need for religious interaction, while
others gravitate to the intangible – the undefined space.
That said, what constitutes sacred space or a sacred place? Furthermore, if
by definition sacred space is where one meets God, then many other questions
beg to be asked. Does God designate this place or do we? Do we set the criteria
for sacred place or is it revealed to us? If God is everywhere, are all spaces
sacred? How does one move into or experience sacred place?
Drawing on these preliminary questions, artists were asked to contemplate sacred
place and to respond to this subject through their work. This exhibition represents
a range of these responses, which aim to foster an ongoing discussion of sacred
spaces and places, and promote additional artistic conversation and spiritual
exploration.
The exhibition was curated by Jo-Ann VanReeuwyk, Assistant Professor of Art
Education at Calvin College, and was juried by Calvin Seerveld, Professor Emeritus
of Philosophical Aesthetics at the Institute of Christian Studies in Toronto,
Canada, and Murray Rae, Lecturer of Systematic Theology at King’s College,
London, United Kingdom.
Programs
Friday, January 28, from 6-8pm
Exhibition Reception
Friday, January 28 & Saturday, January 29, 1:15-2:10pm
Panel Discussion with Exhibition Jurors
The barrier-free Center Art Gallery, located on the lower level of the Spoelhof
College Center, is open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. on Friday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday. There is no admission charge.
CONTACT
Joel Zwart, Director of Exhibitions
(616) 526-6271
jhz2@calvin.edu
www.calvin.edu/centerartgallery