New Paintings: Sacred Spaces | ||
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In September of last year I visited Istanbul for the first time. It is one of the most inspring places I have had the good fortune to visit. On the plane back I began to think about drawing on my travel experiences in Turkey and Italy to start a new painting series dedicated to sacred spaces, focusing on early structures of both the Eastern and the Western Church, as well as some of the great Muslim mosques. My goal is not merely to create visual records of these spaces, but to communicate the experience of them and the emotions they inspire. In a time when peace and reflection is badly needed, I am struck by the power of certain ancient structures to encourage thought, prayer, and peace of mind, and to create a feeling of community among the thousands of strangers who visit them daily. The Church of Aya Sofia (or the Church of the Holy Wisdom) is nothing less than astounding. Though it has been a museum since the early 20th century and has not been a used for worship by Christians since the 14th century, one feels upon entering that it is the center of Christendom. Possibly more than any other church I have visited, this one seems to have a spirit within the very stones of which it is built, a presence that all people feel regardless of their faith or creed. These walls and columns, built at a recorded time in history (Sixth Century A.D.), seem to be of no time, defying the ages, the turbulent history of this place, and many attempts at destruction. What makes the Aya Sofia so unique architecturally is the quality of light inside. The design of the building, with the weight of its mighty dome supported by half domes on either side, permits the finestration of the walls with numerous openings through which light pours in throughout the day. The result is a space penetrated by multiple light sources. The light does not merely illuminate the interior; it is actually tangible, like a liquid penetrating the space from many directions at once. This space, like certain other sacred, ancient spaces in the world, welcomes us and yet makes us individually irrelevant; we forget ourselves, and are temporarily absorbed into the space itself. It stands on its own, quite apart from us, our ideas, our beliefs. It is a testament not to any single age of humankind but to all ages, all human achievement , all things divinely inspired and created. It seems to hold eternity within it.
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