Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Still life with tomato (The Hidden Art of Homemaking)

The Hidden Art of Homemaking, by Edith Schaeffer: weekly discussion at Ordo Amoris (link fixed!)
Chapter 1: The First Artist
"Not all of the physical beauty of the world is equally spoiled, or equally unspoiled.  But there are fragments of beauty to show the glory of the Creator, the Artist God." ~~Edith Schaeffer

"'Poet' literally means 'maker,' and the profoundly challenging thing about all this is that God is a Poet who writes poems about the inner truth of existence, and literally brings them to life, 'acts them out' in terms of everyday realities."  ~~Ruth Etchells, Unafraid to Be (IVP, 1969) 
God as artist, God as poet.  If we are God's workmanship...then we ourselves are His works of art, His poems, along with the rest of His creation.  And if we are created in His image, then we are also called to celebrate His art, His poetry, in our "everyday realities."  Ann Voskamp says that she began her list of a thousand gifts with some jelly and toast...and if that's where beauty begins, so be it.  We need to look for the fragments...or to create some of our own. 
"The zinnias stayed in the bucket on the counter for several days, the focus of small vignettes she built around them.  A crystal candlestick and a blue-and-white porcelain platter pushed into place beside the bucket demanded that even I give it a glance as I ran past to dart outside.  The next day a row of red tomatoes dotted the sill behind the bucket, crisply graphic trim interrupted by a small pottery bird that had been in the living room the day before.  Like flash cards, these small still-life arrangements were my early lessons about scale, composition, and balance."  ~~ Mothers and Daughters at Home, by Charlotte Lyons
What do we have in our homes that is really beautiful?--I don't mean possessions of great value, but something--as Charlotte Lyons says--that inspires with colour, line, balance?  Is there a still-life arrangement waiting to happen?  Do we need to clear off the books and sewing mess from the table first, or put some of the counter clutter in the cupboard to make room for beauty?  Let's do it.

10 comments:

Amy @ Hope Is the Word said...

Thanks for sharing the quotes. I definitely have some messes to clear up before we can see the beauty!

Cindy said...

Your post has inspired me to look for quotes that express hidden art!! I love the idea of zinnias in blue and white porcelain.

Mama Squirrel said...

Cindy, Charlotte Lyons has a blog, , housewrenstudio.typepad.com, if you want to see more of her writing and crafting.

Barbara H. said...

I'm so excited to be part of this book club, and so inspired already!

amy in peru said...

your post reminded me ever so distinctly of a moment in my life a few years ago, that i happened to blog about, and i thought you too might be interested in reading it...? don't feel obligated, but if you do feel favorable, don't worry, it's short. ;)

i'm just amazed at how much your post reminded me of a moment...

amy in peru said...

oh and i'm subscribing to comments RIGHT now, so if you do respond, i'll get it... ;)

Mama Squirrel said...

Hi Amy,

I love the mango! Great photo, great point.

(I had a mild-to-moderate mango obsession during one pregnancy. There, transparent enough?)

hsmomino said...

A lovely post, Mama Squirrel.
poet means maker - I did not know that, but it makes so much sense!
Thank you for the challenge to look for the beauty around us. It's there! If we search for it we will find it!
I'm enjoying this fresh look at Hidden Art. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.

Linda said...

I love, love, loved the quote about God as poet.

Clearing out the clutter is a good first step to making room for beauty.

Thanks for sharing!

M.K. said...

What a thought-provoking post! Thank you. Excellent quotes. You do make me wonder about the stuff I have in my house. Sometimes it is messy and chaotic, and I excuse myself by saying that I have the makings of creative tasks, lying around. But it's not beautiful. And I shouldn't always be waiting to make art tomorrow -- I should try to create beauty today. Something to think on. Thank you so much!