Towards an article on the book Van Gogh’s Ghost Paintings:

Art as an act and lifestyle of reconciliation and place where sorrow and joy come together in healing.

The parable of the life of Vincent Van Gogh…

I’ve been thinking about Vincent Van Gogh’s art since college. I was able to see many of his works and visit two of the places he lived in France. I was young, but drawn to the sad brightness i saw in his life and work. I was friends with a professor back then, who was studying Vincent’s spirituality and where it intersected with his art. I think that contagious seed got in me, as i have always been interested in where art and spirituality meet.

My mother is an artist, my father a minister, so there is something in my life which has always been trying to integrate the two-to bring the two under the same roof in myself and what’s around me. I think i always wanted to live in something like an art church, or gallery house temple. I studied in Switzerland at L’abri to find theological seeds of integration for creativity and spirituality, then later did graduate school in art therapy, studying how art relates to healing on making things more whole.

As a boy, i had an older artist friend named Noah. He was trying to find a spiritual context for his work, but couldn’t and ended up killing himself. This propelled me even more to find that creative context for the Noah’s of the world. To make a haven for artist to integrate their faith and their creativity. I’ve been part of leading several creativity arts communities over the years, with just that mission.

Over the years, this fascination for the integration or reconciliation of the two parts of being human, has never waned! And I’ve come to see art as a dimension of life and myself where we can meet and come to know and be transformed by God. I’ve been fascinated to study the lives of others with what i call a “baptized imagination.” CS Lewis wrote once that when he first read his mentor George Macdonald’s fairy tales, his imagination got baptized! I relate to that, and when i encounter artist who have gone further in integration, i think, it re-challenges me to go even deeper or more holistically, under those waters of unification in Christ!

The late, Francis Shaeffer used to talk about Jesus’ Lordship over the whole person, and the whole of Reality. That He was then, Lord over our imagination, and culture-the symbolic part of cities, and nations. That He is mending the images, and re-attaching them to the true new identity! That got me interested in the role of art in healing people, places and things, more whole, and more then, themselves. It’s still true, and He is bringing them all under the Roof and into the House of Himself-the House of Love, as Henri Nouwen would call it. The art dimension of things is one strata which is being reconciled to and in Christ. For the house as everything, is also symbolic, as Van Gogh put it! God is into healing the image and the person, and making the two one. So, Art is also part of reconciling things to and into God, through Christ, and His Sufferings.

God is One (the Shema prayer), and is making His creations one. What is in rebellion is dying or decaying, or dis-integrating; what is in Him, is integrating- being made whole and true. Art can be part of reconciling the creative dimension of things to God, part of bringing the whole self “home” into that space of intimacy between The Son and The Father, where all healing occurs. That is it’s priestly task. But few artist are great priest!

That is few artist have really placed their amazing gifts on His Altar. What does it take for an artist to know God in sacrifice and suffering? There are few Abrahams in the art world—those willing to sacrifice their son. Many are distracted by fame, or their own vision etc, few bow down to Him, and are thus raised up. In this book, we meet an artist who did humble himself and wanted to encounter God through all he saw and painted. As a result his paintings have the spirit and way of Christ in them, though few are overtly about Christ. Vincent Van Gogh was one artist i think brought together the suffering and joy of Christ onto one canvas, and lived as a type of parable of attempted reconciliation between art and true spirituality centered in Christ.

I think Vincent intuited that God was healing the symbolic not just in us, but also in His Creation through incarnating and being with the suffering of our daily lives, and that our art had a role to play in that. The presence of Joy in suffering, is always Christ! One of the lessons of the parable of Vincent’s life was art is meant to be a place of restoration, reconciliation and healing of ourselves and of creation. The method he used was empathy with other’s suffering. This is the methodology of Christ as well, who comes into His Creation as a suffering servant, and expressed Himself symbolically throughout His Life on earth.

And interestingly, while many painters have painted Christ without knowing Him; Van Gogh knew Him, but didn’t paint him. Interesting. We see that few painters have really attempted to paint the resurrection for instance. Understandably, because then you would have to encounter the Risen One! The few who have, knew Jesus! Back to Van Gogh’s life, what we get from reading his many beautiful letters and viewing his works, is a many who’s spirituality is overheard in his process.

He clearly wrestles with the suffering Christ, and in fact, through that, is drawn to representing suffering around him. So was Jesus. This book is about Vincent’s repeatedly being drawn to the Gethsemane narrative in scripture. The hour of Jesus betrayal and suffering before the Cross. Interesting, that this artist was so drawn to that particular part of the story, but also felt he couldn’t paint it accurately. He painted it twice and destroyed both times. As if he could not fully fathom the level of suffering of Christ in that scene.

Yet, Christ clearly met Vincent in suffering. And Van Gogh even wrote he preferred storms and gethsemane over paradise. He felt it was more beautiful, probably because that’s where Jesus always is. The implied question, is beauty not where Christ is incarnating-that space where He is reconciling broken things towards His Own Wholeness-runs as a living motif throughout all of Vincent’s art. The One acquainted with all our griefs is always implied in Van Gogh’s creative meditations on life around him!

The paradox of joy and suffering being tethered to the same Pole—which is the Cross of Christ—this theme comes through over and over in Vincents works, through direct encounter with the suffering in himself and those around him. No sentimental romantic escapism in his work; always the presence of suffering labor with a ray of joy and hope. Feels more true to what actually is down here. In this sense, he was an authentic artist with an honest vision of how life actually is. So much of christian art of course, has been sentimental—denying either suffering, or on the other end joy. Christ has both. For the joy set before Him (which we are-ie His Joy) He endured The Cross.

King David gave us this idea of living life as a portent sign or symbol. Several biblical characters had their lives as part of their teaching. I think of the prophet Jeremiah, whose biography became part of his message and God’s. In the new testament or covenant, i think of St Paul, whose conversion and life story illustrated his message of hope.

Van Gogh’s life also became a parable. Remember that Jesus Himself did not just speak parables, but lived and incarnated the grand Parable. I think some artist, and people in history echo this Voice. MLK was one. People, whose life story, became a reflection of The Bigger Stories. Yet, to become living portents, require a rare yieldedness.

For an artist to truly lay down their lives, produces art in service to humanity! In this sense, art becomes a living sacrifice of praise despite, yet in clear view, of pain. That’s one of the fruits we look for. The servant artist is rare in history, but I think Van Gogh was trying to become one. Whether he arrived, God only knows, but we get to oversee and overhear his struggle to become a painter of God, and one i believe was trying to be centered in Christ and His incarnation into our daily suffering—His daily Cross, which we still find all around us now! God is always with the weak, the broken, the bruised, and even is said to look for contrite (bruised) hearts.

From his letters and paintings, I think Van Gogh knew that personally, and even saw himself as a bruised and broken man of The Cross. One who was drawn repeatedly to Gethsemane! Maybe he even identified with Christ’s compassion on the man who lost his ear in that fervent scene. Jesus had compassion on that man, while Peter wanted to take him out, you recall!

His lifelong meditation of joy in sorrow as seen in the daily common scenes around him, was Christ like. Incarnational art always deals in sorrow, as Jesus was also drawn to The Cross; and yet there is also a hint of intimation of the Resurrection present as well. For the Cross is tethered upwards, as the old preachers say! Most people want the resurrection without the Cross. But this makes for bad art and bad living—it’s lopsided!

Van Gogh’s art balanced the awareness of joy and suffering in something even as simple as old shoes, and leaning chair, a drab bedroom, or even as glorious as a sunflower. At the end of his life, Vincent painted the heaviness of storm at sunset, with black crows lifting off into a foreboding sky. Many are depressed by the image. I find it to have hope in it; because it feels true to how things are here, for now, yet hints also at that dawn already rising in our hearts, as St John, the artist of the new testament put it. Or as St Peter put it, we endure trials here, which make genuine or authentic our faith. I think Van Gogh had at least an authentic faith!

Van Gogh for instance, saw the parables of Christ in daily life and suffering around him. So didn’t need to paint actual bible scenes, but rather found Christ in the everyday suffering and labor around him. In this sense, he did not illustrate the parables but encountered Christ through them around him.

Painting as parable also led Vincent to become a parable himself—in his case about art and spirituality and where they meet. One key to interpret his life is to see that he saw his art as his spirituality, but was also willing to lay it down for others. In this way, he incarnated with way of Christ’s service and sacrifice. Creativity is a servant.

Few artist are truly humble. When you encounter them you can tell they give God all the glory inside, and just serve the rest of humanity with their gifts. This is mature art. Painting as parable and art as place of spiritual transformation are two themes of Vincent’s life.

The artist and their art can become a parable Jesus is speaking. To become the art you are making is the essence of spiritual formation, but it requires us to lay down our gifts and meet Him in suffering. I think Vincent did. The bright sadness which characterizes the life and art of Vincent Van Gogh, reflects the nature, and at times even the presence of Christ. Thanks Vincent.