Category: Thought of the Day

Becoming a patron of the arts used to be the privilege of the rich. Perhaps it would be seen as a duty, perhaps an expression of power and social ambition. Sometimes simply a tax dodge, but on other occasions passionate patrons could bankrupt themselves leaving contributions they believed contributed to the good of society at large. Through various web sites, or by establishing direct relationships, the opportunity to experience becoming a patron has opened up to those who can afford the price of an extra coffee a week.

Since you are reading this, you are probably already aware of the ways in which Quartz uses artwork online. We also make physical visual arts. Most are enjoyed free at point of access. There is usually a link between the two in each project we work on.

(I’ve posted the artwork from the photo on my patreon page. I’m working on making others more useful for digital displays and printing on service sheets).

On a larger scale artists working as Quartz have developed tapestries, massive installations, walk in labyrinths – and simple cards. They are a way of acting creatively with the world we exist in, with the wider communities we are part of.

In general, this is what artists do and have always done even though the tools change from gold leaf on vellum to illuminated screens. If you’d like to contribute your creativity through Quartz please get in touch to get involved!

Another opportunity the digital age presents are new ways in which many more people can become patrons of the arts and get involved that way.

It is possible for people to like and share their preferences online. In a similar way to encourageing people to visit a gallery in person, you can now share an experience worldwide through your smartphone and friendship networks. Instead of relying on centralised funding and commercial galleries anyone with digital access has the potential to help build up virtual galleries and networks that celebrate new folk art, emerging artists, or amateurs creating for the love of it.

Have you ever looked round social media platforms, Etsy, Patreon, or small high street galleries specifically to discover ways you can nurture artists?

Learning to do so online is a discipline – fight the algorithms which consume your attention!  You can use your likes, comments, and subscriptions to shape the online world.

You can find my Patreon page by following this link

https://www.patreon.com/posts/83840661

¹⁶ “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others:

“‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ 

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”

Read more on Bible Gateway This story is also told in Luke 7:31

Have you ever wondered about the way Jesus talks of Wisdom in these passages? Or compared the description of creating in Proverbs 8:22-31 with the introduction to the Gospel of John? Is Jesus claiming the title of “Wisdom/Sophia” who is described elsewhere as with God before creation and the mother of all good things?

Questions like that, and the process of exploring them, are not everyone’s favourite pastime! Those who wonder about such things when there is a roof to fix and people to feed are often dismissed as just queer – “Why can’t they just be normal”. But for some people they are the experience where they feel their hearts burn within them. Where they converse with others and mystery unfolds like the petals of a flower to receive the sunshine.

It is a delicate process however, and people find it much easier to speak dismissively about abnormal behaviour in ways which lead all but the extremes to clam up and become silent.

This article outlines the authors experience of changes in the use of language within the Church, and asks some salient questions.

Legacy of Carol P. Christ: Can You Kill the Spirit? What Happened to Female Imagery for God in Christian Worship?