“God’s Appointment Book for November 17, 2010″
How “guided” can we claim to be in this life? If there’s a Higher Power or a Supreme Being or a Force, how involved can I expect him (her, it) to be in my everyday life? Omnipotence carries a lot of freight. “All Powerful” means all the knobs are at 11. Nothing goes on without a signature from the front office. But wait a minute: it sure seems like I can stop for a sip of coffee right now (Ewww. It’s cold) or put my feet up on the desk (Oof. Hard to type).
I have friends who feel that God helps them choose what socks they wear each day, and friends who believe that God —if there is one— has no say-so whatever in their daily life. Most of us fall somewhere between the socks and the cynicism. But where?
In this painting, I chose to use the proportion of the floor plan that God gave Moses in telling him how to build the Tabernacle, which was a portable tent/temple the Jews used for years. Interesting, that the Ruler o’ the Universe would get so specific—I mean, building plans? But wait! There’s more! There are specs for furniture and tools, recipes for oils and incenses, even specific artists and artisans God drafts for the project. Check it out— it begins in Exodus 25. But get this: The artisans had to make two angels on the top of the ark, but they could make them whatever kind of angels they wanted, I assume: beefy or slim, buff or dumpy, guy or girl. Baroque or Mannerist, Expressionist or Art Deco (my vote). Or whatever style was hip in the Middle East desert in B.C. This got me thinking: specific instructions, but not direct guidance. God’s omnipotent, but not into micromanagement?
So I set up three areas on the canvas to correspond with the outer court, the holy place, and the holy of holies (where God’s presence was supposed to hover over the ark of the covenant). I chose three different color formulas for each area, and removed a random percentage of the masking squares according to each area’s formula, and spattered primary colors. (Check out “About my process” if I’ve lost you.)
So I was directed by the voice of God, right? By swiping the proportions he dictated to Moses, plus by subjecting my color choices to randomness—throwing the decision into his lap, so to speak. But wait a minute—I thought the whole thing up, didn’t I? Did God turn from the big screen, chuckle indulgently and point the remote my way? Why? Why not? Would I have worn that color socks anyhow?
