Reflecting back on the three topics in Chapter 13 , "Spirituality, Religion and the Supernatural", give at least three examples of art forms that are connected to these three topics.
Student Response
Tribal masks hung as wall art, marble statuary, jewelry made from precious metals and gemstones, and song. Each of these is an example of paranormal tradition that that have gained social acceptance in the realm of modern-world art consumers.
Masks are used in many cultures for a variety of reasons. From the Kabuki masks and Dragon masks of Ancient China and Japan, to the tribal masks of African or American natives, each has a purposed based in the spiritual practices of its people. Some are intended to provoke a fear response in enemies, or to invoke spirit beings that will stand as guardian to the forces being faced. They are believed, within their society, to be symbolic of great power. As art, they are hung in homes or businesses to enhance appearance of the property – chosen for color scheme or placed with other masks in an arrangement that is aesthetically pleasing but with little or no regard to the notion of spirits invoked.
In several areas of Europe, it was common practice for families to have small representations of the god(s) they worshipped. They would care for these idols or make offerings to them in worship, believing that their gods would grant them protection or succor, in return for their devotion. As Christianity spread throughout the land, church leaders would commission representations of their “saints”. These saints, in an effort by the church to subsume the “heathen” relations, often bore physical or aspect relation to the local deities they were replacing, to make forced conversion to the state religion more palatable. These statues were housed in the church building, as a way to encourage attendance (so the common man could still worship what was familiar but would hear about them within context of the priest’s sermons). Today, museums fight for the privilege of housing pieces created by the renowned artisans of that period, seeking to educate the public on both the craftsmanship involved and the politics surrounding each piece.
Jewelry has been worn throughout recorded history by religious and occult practitioners. Similar to the belief regarding masks, they believe that certain metals and gems hold supernatural properties, and that wearing them on the body can allow that person to access or benefit from those properties. One needs look no further than your local drug store (copper or magnetic bracelets) or night club (ankhs and crosses) or for examples of the wide-scale acceptance as art form of this supernatural practice.
Song crosses the boundaries of all three – whether chants, melodies, or wordless tunes. It allows people, individually or as a group, to express their feelings on these topics in a way that connects powerfully for them on a personal level. In popular culture today, this tradition has been commercialized to the point that production values and revenue generation are (unfortunately) more often important than any message the artist might be trying to communicate through song.
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