Christians and the creative arts—Push for Originality

[LambCreek]

For those of us who make our living in the the creative arts, we are all too often pressed and molded by deadlines that crowd out originality. It's "the tyranny of the urgent" as someone said, maybe Yogi Berra. The " art" part of design is set aside by a collection of borrowed stock images and backgrounds we so easily gather.

Occasionally I am able to push away from the time/budget box and regain originality.
A number of years ago, I created a poster and cover for a teaching series by Dr. Ed Young, Second Baptist Church, Houston called BATTLE STRATEGY.

It is still among my top 10 favorite poster/sermon series covers I have ever created. To produce it, I hand-crafted a 5’ sword out of folded paper, leather, wood and plaster of Paris. Scripture for the background was created with photocopy cut-outs of old hand calligraphic type. Everything was then photographed in pieces. Those pieces were photo-combined and transferred into the design.

Second Baptist kept the real wood and paper sword under glass for a number of years. I’m not sure where it is today.

I believe that originality, if it's clean and pure, can honor the One who put creativity in Man when He made us in His image. On occasion we can look on the work of our hands and say, "That's good."

Peter Lamb (pseudonym)
Lamb Creek Christian Creative Services