Posted: 12/19/03
Church makes community interaction a fine art
EAGLE LAKE–A small Texas Baptist church became an art gallery for a day this fall, as church members sought to help their community connect the dots between faith and art.
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| Artists involved with the Art & Soul event at First Baptist Church of Eagle Lake included Jessica Thacker, Margo Harrison, Tony Tyler and Sandra Benge The group is shown Pastor Chris Thacker and Tyler's scultpture, “The Dance.” |
Following the lead of a successful similar event in 2001, members of First Baptist Church of Eagle Lake hosted “Art & Soul: A Celebration of Faith and Art.”
Church members Margo Harrison and Sandra Benge coordinated the Sunday afternoon event. They began contacting local artists, encouraging them to share their works with the community and informing them that each piece would be displayed gallery-style in the church's Fellowship Hall.
Tables were set up, draped with cloths and fabric. Wooden partitions used at the county fair became backdrops for the pieces.
Volunteers created a virtual museum, with displays ranging from photography to woodworking. Adjoining Sunday School classrooms were transformed into four-walled easels highlighting quilts, ceramics and glasswork. Local high-school art students brought sketches, paintings and poetry.
More than 80 artists contributed their works for the show, which drew about 150 people.
Dramatic readings and monologues were recited. The high school drama team performed a section of their fall production. Also, Christian artists Jeremy and Jamie Wells of Houston provided a lecture and visual demonstration.
“This event was not a worship service,” explained Pastor Chris Thacker. “No songs were sung, and no sermon was delivered. Yet God was at the center, recognized as the chief Creator who welcomes his children's offerings, their artistic expressions of faith. For faith, like art, tells a story that beckons people to look, ponder, ask questions and ultimately, believe.”
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