Outside A Stained Glass Window

In late 2002, I went on a nine-day trip with my father to Hong Kong, which is where he grew up. I already was several years into a successful professional career, so it required taking some time off from a busy schedule. But my dad and I saw this as an opportunity to do some good ol’ Father & Son bonding, so I was glad to go.

We had a great time on the trip. We traveled all over that expansive city by planes, trains, and automobiles, checking out my dad’s old stomping grounds and meeting distant relatives for the first time. And I kept an eye out for any and all McDonald’s, since, when God created me, He apparently decided to flex his sense of irony. (“Hey, watch this: let’s make him be Chinese and hate Chinese food. Come on, it’ll be funny!”)

There’s something just a tad precarious about a God who is omnipotent and has a sense of humor.

One stop on our tour that stood out to me was St. John’s Cathedral, the oldest Anglican church building in the Far East, having opened its doors in 1849. When we arrived, a memorial service for a well-known Hong Kong dignitary was coming to a close, and outside there were dozens of flower arrangements sent by many of the city’s elite. (I remember, in particular, a large bouquet that film star Jackie Chan had offered.) My dad and I sat down in the shade to watch the people as they offered condolences to one another before leaving.

Once the church building had cleared out, we walked inside to take a look. What impressed me the most was the massive stained-glass window set in the east wall of the chancel. It was a beautiful piece of art, a towering collection of vivid color depicting Jesus Christ on the Mount of Crucifixion, as Mary, His mother, and Mary Magdalene stood nearby weeping. This wonderful stained glass artwork captured a moment and told a story. The light that poured through all these pieces of glass arranged together illuminated the entire sanctuary and everyone in it.

After my dad and I left the building, however, we got a different view of this same piece of stained glass art. The church’s east wall runs right next to the street, and as we made our way down the sidewalk, I looked up at the window. From outside the church, the window was not a beautiful story or piece of artwork; it was only a tangled mess of soldered lead and rough, mismatched glass fragments. From that outside perspective, I couldn’t tell what the glasswork was trying to say at all, and I certainly couldn’t see Jesus in it.

Understanding perspective is key to being a creative artist. Not only should the artist be able to effectively present his own perspective through his medium, but he must also take into consideration the perspective of his viewers. Too often, creative artists forget this, and especially in niche genres like faith-based art: it illuminates and makes sense to people on the inside of the church, but not to anyone on the outside. That’s okay, I guess, if the artwork is intended solely for the people on the inside, but it is a failure if it is also intended for the people who are outside, because it is nothing but a tangled mess to them. The artist has not communicated to the outsiders.

But it isn’t just in faith-based art that this occurs. It’s in any type of art that communicates to an audience without taking into consideration their perspective, without providing them with a context by which they are able to understand. And the problem is that, given this breakdown in communication, too many artists would rather blame the audience members for being outsiders than make the effort to provide them with that context which would allow them to understand. This is artistic elitism.

It’s not that your art has to be blatant or obvious – in fact, you usually want to avoid that. There’s something important about knowing how to conceal truth within your creation so that the viewer engages in the process of searching for it. But the increasing diversity and pluralism of our world has created a fragmented culture in which the people around you do not necessarily share the same background, convictions and values that you do. As a result, to assume that they will understand what you are trying to convey from your insider’s view will likely lead only to failed communication.

As you create this month in your own artistic endeavors, take some time to get a little perspective – other than just your own. Ask yourself who your intended viewers are and whether you actually are communicating in a way they can understand. If you aren’t, take a step back from your artwork for a moment and reassess how to broaden its scope so that they too are on the inside, so that they too can be illuminated.

All my best,

Shun Lee
Director,
Hollywood Connect

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• Creativity & Art