“You can’t begin too soon to encourage an appreciation of art! And each artwork has a story.”
THE PROMISE OF NEW LIFE – A New Member of Baba’s Art School Enters the World!
Not only has Baba’s Art School resumed. . . but its student body has grown!
This is a magical time of year. And all the more so for this Baba who has just been gifted a new grandchild, a little girl born this Christmas season. Elara Brigid has entered our world, and into our lives. Her parents, grandparents and cousins (the grandchildren in photos above and below) are in a state of awe and delight with this enchanting mystery of new life. Charles Dickens, the 19th century English writer, describes this state of wonder perfectly: “These little ones are fresh from God.”
It seemed like the perfect time for this Baba to introduce his “older” grandchildren to an entrancingly luminous canvas by the noted contemporary American sacred artist, Daniel Bonnell. I met Bonnell in 1990, and his inspiring creativity has served as one of my spiritual teachers over the years. I have been a collector and a patron of his art for over 30 years.
Last year, I received an email from Bonnell that said:
“I found a painting that I rolled up stored on a back shelf. It is a surrealist piece, oil on canvas and quite large. It has a Chagall style attitude. It is 13 years old. It hangs like a banner with grommets. . . It shows Mary feeding the new born Christ with a host of angels observing the miracle. It is a beautiful whimsical scene of wonder and mystery. I’m sending it to you as a gift of love and appreciation.”
Bonnell titled this painting, “Nativity – The Mystery of Incarnation.” Reflecting the style of the 20th century Belarusian-French artist Marc Chagall, whom he regards as a mentor, the painting is full of symbolism. In this painting, the universe provides a stage, and baby Jesus the drama, reminding me of Shakespeare’s lines in the first scene of his play Hamlet; “So hallowed and so gracious is the time.”
It is a marvelous scene; with all the depth and mystery one could ever wish. While the painting has signs and symbols throughout, it is the way in which Bonnell portrays the mother, Mary, as she feeds the newborn Jesus, that draws my attention. Bonnell beautifully captures this miracle moment of grace with his brush in the expression on Mary’s face, and with the infant Jesus encircled with a gold aura. In the painting, you can feel the chemistry of the moment, as Mary looks upon her newborn, while she feeds him that first holy night.
The painting leads me to wonder what Mary is pondering as she looks down at this new little life in her arms. She seems to be seeing more than a little baby. I have the sense that what is being revealed to her through this new life is a wholly new perspective on her Creator. It is a fresh revelation that makes possible not just a new way of understanding life, but a new way of living.
Bonnell uses the word “incarnation” in the painting’s title. The core message of the story of Jesus’ birth, often referred to as “the Incarnation,” is that our Creator is all about being for us; as opposed to a distant Supreme Other who looks upon humanity more with displeasure than love.
The nativity story is about our Creator entering our humanity, into our life realities, with love. It is commonly rumored that a popular king in one of the Arab countries often “disappears” and walks incognito among his people. Asked by his security detail and members of his parliament not to do so out of concern for his safety, he responds, “I need to be among my people in order to help them live?”
In this baby Jesus, we are reminded that our Creator desires to share and enhance our lives. This newborn highlights for us in the most fundamental way, that our Creator’s deepest desire is one of goodwill toward all. Through the nativity story we are reminded that our Creator is not aloof or remote, but, among each and every one of us, desiring to provide us new life, toward making our ordinary lives extraordinary, regardless of the state of existence in which we find ourselves.
The story of this child’s birth some 2000 years ago is a profound reminder that the Divine Artist is the very embodiment of mercy, desiring all to experience life in its fullest dimension. I love how the early nativity songs written by Ephrem the Syrian, in the 4th century, personify the newborn Jesus as the very essence of divine “mercy.” And it explains why Augustine of North Africa used “mercy” as another name for our Creator, and for my Muslim friends, why the first line of the Qur’an begins with “In the Name of God [Allah], the Merciful and Compassionate.”
Through this nativity story we are reminded that our Creator can bring light into any darkness and provide joy, hope and new life. In essence, Bonnell’s magnificent painting is not only about a holy miracle that broke into a troubled night many years ago, but also about how the miracle of new life can break into anyone’s night, even the darkest nights of our lives.
After receiving Bonnell’s painting and hanging it, I received this note from him:
“I have witnessed that it appears that each of my paintings simply come through me destined for a specific resting place, or home, or purpose. I guess I am simply a foster parent with each piece awaiting to be delivered to its destined home. You are also a foster parent. . . Together, we are allowed to stand back and be a witness to the beauty of the mystery. . . It is actually incomprehensible for us to grasp the Incarnation. It is too beautifully inconceivable. That is the focus of the work. I am so glad that you became the parent of the painting!”
It is a privilege to be the “foster parent” of this magnificent painting. And I couldn’t be more honored to be a grandparent. I see both as sacred responsibilities.
PS: The grandkids loved discovering all the "hidden” faces in the painting – angels, onlookers, animals – albeit sometimes confusing them. :)
About this artwork:
Daniel Bonnell, Nativity-The Mystery of Incarnation, 2010 / 2023
Oil on canvas, 80” x 32”
To learn more about Daniel Bonnell and his art: https://bonnellart.com/