Bezalel, Skills and Inspiration

It’s Open Studio season and today is the first open studio! I have four dates scheduled for the fall. You can visit in person or online and get a personal showing. To visit online, simply use the contact form or reply to the Magic newsletter and ask for an appointment. You can schedule appointments on the following dates between 1 and 7 pm Central time.

Friday, October 14, 1-7 pm (TODAY!)

Friday, October 21, 1-7 pm

Friday, November 4, 1-7 pm

Friday, December 2, 1-7 pm

This Week in the Studio

The Arty Party was fun as usual. I meant to update the shop with all the new goodies this week, but it just hasn’t happened. I’m happy that I have plenty of music students (they light up my life!), and family to care for.

The commissions are flowing in, mostly for Christmas gifts of pottery. If you have a request, please be sure to message me SOON, because all art takes time. I am working on pet portrait which will be a gift from the client to a friend whose golden retriever passed this week from widespread cancer. Fortunately we have lots of great photos of him being the goofy guy he always was to create a memorial portrait.

Here’s one of the preliminary drawings I did.

I spent a lot of time earlier in the week cleaning the studio, because it was a MESS! It’s a small space, and when I’ve been working for a week or two hard and heavy, it gets to the point where I can’t even get around in there. My weird little dog Tweed started to table surf, and found that crunching pastels made him happy…yeah, no, not at $6 a crunch! That’s gotta stop! So I cleaned all the pastels and sorted them back in their palettes and all the surfaces cleared and things put away…and now I’m ready to embark on all these commissions and holiday creations.

Who Was Bezalel?

Bezalel was the first person mentioned in the Bible as having the ability to design artistic works and also being described as “filled with the Spirit of God”. He received special inspiration from God to work in “all manner of artistic workmanship.” The second person was Bez’s tribesman Aholiab, and they were both filled by God with the skill to do all manner of artistic work for one purpose: to direct the work of building the tabernacle of the Lord.

They, along with every gifted artisan came and collaborated to do this very detailed and glorious work. Whether or not you have any belief in or respect for the Bible as a spiritual document, the detailed account of the building of the tabernacle in the desert, with the tools of that ancient time, is a historical marvel well worth reading.

Skills

My point today is this, though. Bezalel and Aholiab and the others were already doing these works, exercising these skills and practicing their craft when they were inspired by the Lord. They weren’t herding sheep or grinding grain one day and then the next they knew how to weave and cut gemstones and work in gold, silver, and bronze. They had already spent years within their disciplines, learning and growing in knowledge before God called them and inspired them with the wisdom and understanding of how He wanted his tabernacle built.

I contemplate this and come to several conclusions about artistic “talent” and character, skills, and inspiration. Here are three of them.

1. Talent does not stand alone. It is nothing if it is not accompanied by skill and practice.
2. Inspiration cannot stand alone. It is nothing if it is not accompanied by skill and practice.
3. God knew well ahead of time that there would be a need for very skilled artisans, and he chose Bezalel and Aholiab by name as well as many others to prepare them for this honor.

Inspiration

I believe that I only wanted to begin making art because God was and is preparing me for something although I don’t know what that is. It doesn’t matter. I am going to develop the character, discipline, skills and practice so that I am ready when the call–the inspiration–comes. That means my practice and my failures are not a waste. They are an integral and vital part of the process.

It is ok to be an artist that is interested in and practicing several different arts or mediums. Being a polymath is sometimes exactly what God needs. Don’t let yourself be conned by those who say you should focus on ONE thing. It’s ok to try it all!

If you have the desire to be creative, any “talent” you display has God as it’s origin. And you have a job to do. He will gift you with all you need. Build your skills, develop your craft, practice your medium.  Inspiration will come when the time is right, but you need to be prepared by working today, and tomorrow, and the next day and the next.

“Waste” the paper. Use the expensive paint. Paint along with the tutorial. Take the class. Get creative daily. Practice your piano or guitar even if you sound bad today.

Tomorrow the call may come.

And the beauty of it all is that while you are enjoying practicing the art, you’re learning to see the music, hear the colors, touch the magic and awaken the wonder and worship in your heart!

Godspeed,