The Big Question

This month’s question is: ‘What is your favourite depiction of the Easter story in art and why?’

“In the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, I saw the compelling Easter collection and that was where I was in awe of the creativity there.

“Then I recalled the feelings of gratitude I had when I saw Michelangelo’s La Pieta inside St Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City where the sorrowful Mary cradled the dead body of Jesus.

“In Sedona’s Chapel of the Holy Cross, I was captivated by the depiction of the living Christ crucified upon the tree of life. It depicted humanity’s journey from its fall in the Garden of Eden to God’s intended redemption bringing hope for all of God’s people.

“There were many other captivating depictions of Easter that I have learned much from as I journeyed to London, Paris, and the Holy Land, but it was closer to home in Perth Museum and Art Gallery when I unassumingly and quite unexpectedly encountered a painting that impacted upon my faith in a very positive way.

“‘Christ Displaying His Wounds’, by Giacomo Antonio Gali, is a striking painting in which Jesus draws open the wound on his body where the soldier had pierced him.

As Jesus does this, he stares, looking right at you with an expression of surprise.

As I stood there, looking back at the resurrected Christ, I realised the potential of interpretation of Christ asking: ‘Do you see what they did to me?’ In this painting, Jesus irresistibly compels us to consider his sufferings, the sufferings of all people and our own vulnerability. Intriguing work. Intriguing theology. See for yourself.”

“The first time I saw the Salvador Dali painting in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Art Gallery, it blew me away. I don’t think of myself as a deeply emotional person, but I had never felt like that about anything before. I knew instinctively that I was in the presence of genius. The painting of Christ of St John of the Cross connected with my soul in a way that no other art ever has.

“It is probably the gallery’s main draw, usually surrounded by crowds of viewers. Their faces seldom display any obvious wonderment. Being a public space, that’s to be expected. I long to ask out loud: ‘Do you get it?’ Of course, I say nothing, but I hope that many others do share an intensely spiritual moment as they study the figure of the crucified Christ.

“Anyone who knows the painting will be aware that on one level there is much, potentially, to frustrate the observer. The direction of the shadows seems wrong for the position of the light. The Spanish fishermen with their boat at the bottom look as if they belong in another painting. There are two skies, one of the deepest black, the other with a vivid sunset. More unnervingly for the Christian, on the hands of Christ there is no blood. His cross hovers strangely in the air, as if to detach him from the world he came to save, contrary to orthodox teaching. The whole scene is to me one of peace; of accomplishment rather than suffering.

“I shall never fully understand this painting, nor will I ever fail to be moved by it.”

“You may have visited an art gallery and stood before some of those old religious paintings, and they have done nothing for you. In many of them, human figures are placed against a golden sky. The figures are not individualised and the gestures, posture and drapery are stylised. They are not our style. A painter today would give expression to the faces and to individuality, which is more to our taste.

“What gave me great pleasure was a Boys’ Brigade colouring-in competition in the Scottish Borders two years ago.

As Chaplain to the local Battalion, I was asked to set a ‘Chaplain’s Challenge’.

A stock cartoon pen and ink drawing of the Palm Sunday procession was issued and the different Companies took part.

“It was just before the first Covid-19 lockdown, but over fifty entries were received. The colours and inventiveness of some of the pictures were impressive, delightful, and in one or two cases, profound. Prizes were awarded, but Covid rules prevented them from being presented. As the prizes were large chocolate Easter eggs which would otherwise have passed their sell-by date, they had to be consumed. That proved to be enjoyable too.

“The stylised Old Masters had the right idea in suggesting that our fulfilment is to be found within the glory of God. We tend to search for meaning everywhere except where it is most obviously to be found – in God’s house and among the Christian community.”

“Having studied Fine Art for a year as part of my MA at St Andrews University in the 1970s, I was delighted to get the chance to return to much of that material for a semester at Edinburgh while doing my BD. ‘Christ in Art’ confirmed that I am a visual learner and contemplating art has helped deepen my personal faith and help others to consider many aspects of our Christian beliefs.

“Art from early Mediaeval up to modern times includes many opportunities to view the Christian story with fresh eyes.

“Easter is well represented in Christian art and one of the works I return to year after year for inspiration is the Isenheim Altarpiece by Mathis Grunewald (1510-1516). It was commissioned for the chapel of a hospice near Colmar in France for those suffering a terrible skin disease and so the graphic representation of Christ on the cross, with the suffering witnesses, on the outer panels evoked empathy and sympathy.

“The altarpiece also has depictions of the entombment, some of Jesus’ miracles and then, when opened at Easter, a glorious image of the Resurrection, with Christ ascending in magnificent colour from the dark tomb. Easter in a nutshell!

“I have also discovered a modern Roman Catholic priest and artist, Sieger Koder, whose works represent Jesus’ story and are included in several books of reflections which are easily available and good for group use and congregational inspiration.”

“I’m currently really taken by images of the empty tomb, both from the viewpoint of those looking into it and those depictions that look from the dark tomb out into the light.

“I love the connection that this makes with the miracle of Jesus bringing Lazarus back to life from the dark tomb that he was rotting in.

“Whilst alive Jesus modelled, with Lazarus, His big plan to be the one who asks, or actually commands, us to leave the darkness, to come out into the light and live life in all its fullness with Him.

“Then on Easter Sunday he shows again that there is a way out of the darkness for all of us, for all time, through His sacrifice on the cross and amazing resurrection.

“I hope to remember, often, as I look out of the different ‘tomb’ moments that I face in life, that I don’t have to stay and rot in the dark, but I can heed Jesus’ call, reach out to Him and be pulled into a place with more light and life.

“I also pray that anyone reading this who feels as though they are in a tomb, due to past hurts or current circumstances, will reach out to Jesus, grasp hold of His hand and pray that He brings you into a lighter place, or a place where things seem less tomb-like.”

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