Brehm students use original songs, fiction, film, and more to engage theology
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05/26/11
Members of the Fuller community gathered on campus on Friday, May 20, for ArtVentures, a presentation and reception displaying and celebrating the master’s theses of students completing a degree emphasis in Theology and the Arts or Worship, Theology, and the Arts through the Brehm Center. In lieu of a traditional paper, these 13 students chose to do a creative thesis project as their culminating response to their studies. The results were eclectic and inspiring, from an original album to an art quilt to a short film.
“Every year I am encouraged and renewed by the caliber and quality of thesis projects our students produce,” said Nate Risdon, associate academic director of the Brehm Center. “Whether in scope, artistry, or subject matter, our students’ projects display how to holistically address matters of both theology and practical ministry.”
In her project entitled “Trading Places, Changing Spaces,” Elspeth Noble (MAT Theology and Art ’11) explores how running theater workshops with people currently experiencing homelessness might create a safe arena for them to “glimpse what it means to be human in light of God’s love.” Noble remarked, “Where the imagination is
inspired, hope becomes possible.”
Cynthia Glass (MAT Theology and Art ’12), on the other hand, set up a contemplative art installation in Fuller’s prayer garden where she provided visual, musical, and responsorial elements meant to evoke contemplation of God’s presence in relation to sacred time and sacred space. “The different ways you experience time can affect the way you experience reality and bear witness to the kingdom of God,” Glass explained.
Another student, Gillian Grannum (MDiv Worship, Theology, and the Arts ’11), explored the themes of creation and re-creation (improvisation) through a jazz vespers worship event one Saturday in May. The following Monday, many students were buzzing with their glowing reviews of the way Grannum and her team of musicians drew from the monastic tradition of evening vespers and the spontaneous inventiveness of jazz performance.
For John Lui (MAT Theology and Art ’12), the project was an opportunity to ask others how they envision the future of theological aesthetic education. In an anthology entitled “Future of Theology and Art Education
(FOTA),” Lui compiles interviews, articles, photographs, and illustrations in an effort to present a wide range of perspectives on the issue. Having studied art and design before coming to Fuller, Lui is aware of “the crucial role artists have in our increasingly visual culture,” and used his project as a way of juxtaposing elements of pedagogic inquiry and creative design.
“We desire that the artists be empowered and encouraged to do the work they were created by God to do,” commented Risdon. “Above all, our goal is to glorify God through the students’ work and the impact it has on both artist and community.”
For more information about the Brehm Center and degree programs emphasizing worship and the arts, please visit
www.brehmcenter.com.
Photos: (Left) - Brehm Center artist-in-residence Christopher Slatoff and Elspeth Noble discuss her project
(Right, bottom) - Cynthia Glass' "Everyday Sabbaths" contemplative art installation in Fuller's prayer chapel