False Teachers

Doctor of Love

Recently Pope Benedict XVI declared that we are soon to be honored to have two new saints declared doctors of the Church. The two saints are St. John of Avila and St. Hildegard. I must confess, as much as I am excited about having new doctors, I am ignorant as to who they are and what they've written. Though I suppose that part of the point of naming these saints as doctors is to encourage the faithful to explore their writings and teachings after all.

As I got to thinking about how I knew so little about them I also began to realize how little I know about the 33 doctors we currently are blessed with. I know that the doctors have each given some new light to mysteries of God and of the Faith, as such they have been bestowed with titles such as The Doctor Grace, in the case of Saint Augustine. Some are much more particular like Saint Bede the Venerable who is the Doctor of English History (though his contributions to philosophical and theological study are certainly well beyond the bounds of either time or geography).

In my search to find more charisms and therefore, titles, of the doctors I found that St. Therese of Lisieux is not only the Doctor of Confidence, but also the Doctor of Love. Having heard this I couldn't help but to come up with the following design for a T-shirt and sticker:

 

Keep in mind that imagining the text being narrated by Barry White helps really active that double entendre hinted at by the rockin' 70's font.

Being that I am still in the (albeit final) stages of printing up the Communion with ROME gives me Extraordinary Form shirts and stickers I am not yet in the active production of the above design. However, don't let that stop you from voicing your opinion.

Is this a shirt or sticker that you'd like to exist? If they were to exist would you buy them? Did you know that St. Therese is the Doctor of Love or did you just think that was a title reserved to KISS fans trying to impress their old ladies? If St. Therese is the Doctor of Love is it too much of a stretch to call her the O.G of Love (I know space cowboy would be too much)? Feel free to add any other mildly outdated musical allusions as well as you comment below...

Make It: Collage Writings

A small teaser for the upcoming Aggiornamento Art and Cultural Exhibition opening tomorrow night.

Saturday Aesthetic Expression: Guy Fawkes Day

Editing error- Post written by Joey on Brittany's account.  We're so "one" we write for each other now!

Today is celebrated throughout Great Britain as "Guy Fawkes Day".  When you think of Guy Fawkes, what do you think of?  As an American the only thing that comes to mind is fireworks (well, that or V for Vendetta)

(photo credit)

But why on earth do those Brits set off explosions on Guy Fawkes?  Cause that's what he did, well...tried to do.

(photo credit)

Guy Fawkes was a convert to Catholicism after his mother married a Catholic when his father died when he was 8 years old.  But he lived in England when being a Catholic was not exactly safe.  So he moved to Spain for awhile and fought for the Catholic Spainards during the 80 years war before returning home to try and "replace" Queen Elizabeth with a Catholic monarch and return England to the Church.  Well, that kind of backfired- with imprisonment, torture and execution.

(photo credit)

Anyway, we're Catholic, and not so fond of all the bad things Queen Elizabeth and her ilk did to British Catholics like Fawkes, St. William of York and countless other untold martyrs for the Faith. Today the protestant Brits celebrate his defeat by burning effigies of the Guy Fawkes and of the Pope, but that's crazy cuz the Pope is great. Queen Elizabeth on the other hand was a bit of a tyrant.

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And you know what they say in ol' Virginny (where Brittany hails from), "Sic Semper Tyrannis" or in other words:"thus always to tyrants" or in other, other words "this is what yer tyrannical ways'll get ya".

I made our effigy of Queen Elizabeth, though before the addition of the portrait of Elizabeth (printed draft quality of course) it was running precariously close to being a little too blair witchy. I dunno, you be the judge.

(photo credit)

In addition to the creation of the effigy, we also decided to rewrite the traditional Guy Fawkes Day children's rhyme:

Remmember remember the fifth of November

revolution and freedom besought.

I see no reason why tyranny's season

Should ever be forgot...

So yea... there is a long tradition of exacting vengence upon those whom you revile or, in the least irritate you, throughout art history. You don't have to know a lot about the interpersonal relationships of Michaelangelo to guess that the fella he painted in hell with the ears of an ass and a snake biting him was probably not "besties" with the famed sistine chapel painter.

 

(photo credit)

Symbolism is such a great thing. I mean, its way better to paint a guy with a snake biting his "special area" than it is to punch him in the face. Less violent, and a vengence that lasts the ages. That guy is long dead, but everyone is still quite clear of how Michaelangelo felt about him.

 better to burn in these fires than in the eternal ones

Similarly with Queen Elizabeth, I'd much rather burn an effigy of her to abate my personal vengeance and pray for her soul to be spared from God's Justice by His Mercy than the alternative.

Make It! - Plaster Sculpture

It mentions in our tagline that I'm an artist, but I'm sure most of you are like, "sure buddy, so where's the art?" Well, here is a little taste:

Short of some sanding and staining this plaster sculpture is essentially finished. Technically this piece is an example to show to my students which I teach art to through a local homeschooling cooperative but I am so pleased with the final result that I may make a mold of it for a future ceramic installation.

This month rather than creating work (which I love) I think that my primary "make it" has more to do with instilling a sense of beauty and creative expression in my students. Currently I am teaching Introductory Ceramic Handbuilding to a group of 15 elementary aged students as well as Art Design and Fabrication Fundementals to a class of middle-high school students. In early November I will also be taking on a brief 3 week workshop with 20 students elementary-high school.

I love teaching.

Even more I love teaching art.

Even, even more I love teaching art to kids.

With that in mind, any locals who are interested, I offer semester long and workshop length classes to students ranging in age from 5-adult. I can either go to a location (such as the case with the current co-ops) or I also offer classes out of my studio which is equipped with a wheel, a kiln, sundry handbuilding/carving/shaping tools and of course, the requisite studio dachshund.

While the focus of my passion (and fine arts degree) is ceramics (handbuilding, throwing and moldmaking) I also offer multi-media concept design and fabrication classes from beginner-advanced.

For those that want something less intense, with less committment I also have a ton (literally) of molds which are available for "paint your own pottery" type sessions/parties.

I offer a 10% discount to fellow Catholics as well as donate an additional 10% to charity, for those that are interested.

Finally, one "make it" that Britt and I have been discussing lately is to actually put together a more legit website for me, so stay tuned for that, which will give more images and access to my work as well as provide more details regarding my workshops.

Make It!- Making Room for the Rosary

As you may already know, we are a Catholic family. And today, October 7th, is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

It's also my dear sister's birthday.  Happy birthday, Genevieve!  I love you!

I am not nearly as devoted to the Rosary as I want to be, or as I should be.  But recently, I rearranged my house.  I do this pretty often, actually.  Maybe every month or so a room will be completely re-done, or partially at least.  So this is my "Make It" for today, even though technically I did this a few weeks back. 

Our Family Shrine, with Tryptic by Gwyneth Holsten

Make room, then Make A Room, for Jesus and Mary.

Joey and I have always had a small family shrine.  When we were engaged, Joey found a beautiful sofa table at a thrift store, then he ordered a Prie Dieu (or kneeler), and a Resin Crucifix. When we got married we lived in a 2 bedroom apartment.  There, our Family Shrine lived in our master bedroom. Since Joey lived by himself for several months before we got married, when I moved in, I basically filled the second bedroom with boxes from my apartment that I never got around to going through until we moved into our house. So the shrine stayed in the bedroom.  It was seriously dusty- both because it was under the air conditioner vent and because it was never used.  When we prayed together, we either did it on the couch in the living room, or anywhere else.  There was too much visual clutter and not enough space to properly use our beautiful little shrine.

a view from the kitchen door

Then, when I was 8 months pregnant with Charlotte, we bought and moved into our current home.  We set up the shrine in a prominent corner of the living room- and basically forgot about it.   I often prayed my rosary while rocking the baby to sleep, and Joey prayed his while riding the commuter train into class downtown, and when we did get the chance to pray together, it was often while we were lying in bed just before falling asleep- or more often, WHILE we fell asleep.

But I've become more and more convinced that it is more important, especially as Charlotte gets older, to pray our family rosary together, awake, and in a special place.  So I made one.

Tryptic by Gwyneth Holsten, Family Bible, our rosaries (Charlotte's is the prettiest don't you think?), Holy Water, a small Bible for study, and our Relic of St. Roch (not pictured are the statues of St. Roch and Our Lady of Victory)

In our house, we have a small dining room off of our kitchen.  We also have 2 "living rooms"- one in the front of the house connected to the dining room, and the other on the back of the house connected to the kitchen and garage.  I've made the back living room into a toy/play room, which has made my life so much easier!   All the toys have a place- in THAT room!  But the front room has been re-purposed a million times.  And that's where the shrine was.

So instead of having a tiny, squishy dining room and a useless living room, I switched them- partly.  I put the table on one side of the living room with a coffee area on the other side (2 comfy chairs and a table) and the loveseat, shrine and a bookcase in the dining room- now "sitting and praying" room.  The loveseat faces the shrine.  This is amazing!  Now, every time I sit down to nurse or anything else, there's Jesus, in my face!  I haven't failed to pray the rosary yet this month, and even better, Charlotte is reminding me when I do forget.  Yesterday, she brought me my rosary and asked to pray.  I love having that little Holy Minute (or 20) with her and Beatrice in the middle of the day or, like today, after dinner with Daddy too!

View from the new dining room into the old one

So, I made myself a space in my home for prayer, and I'd like to challenge you to do the same.  Not just a space in your schedule, because we all know how ever changing those can be when you have small children, and not just a place in your pocket where you forget about it until you wash your clothes, but in your home for you to share with your children and spouse, and anybody else who may be visiting.  Mother Teresa said "The family that prays together stays together, and if they stay together they will love one another as God has loved each one of them. And works of love are always works of peace." And our own Bishop Conley this week recounted the story of a friend who owed his marriage to praying the rosary together every day. 

From my coffee chair

So whether you pray the Rosary, which is a beautiful scriptural based method of meditative prayer, or some other form of prayer and meditation, make room for it in your life both spiritually and actually.

Good Catholic art (again, by Gwyneth) and a little Catholic Library round it all out.