U-conography
Iconic images have always been important in the church, reaching a zenith of significance and artistry during the high Middle Ages and early Renaissance. Images carry emotional content in ways that the written word does not, and though I’m primarily a word person, I deeply appreciate the visual image for its potential power and beauty. Sometimes the image has more immediate impact and conveys greater nuance than written words can achieve. Images can communicate core meaning quickly by suggesting as much as explaining.
The images, fonts, and background texture that make up the U-Church blog header were carefully chosen and rendered to reflect the “spirit” of this endeavor and, as such, compliments our value emphases discussed here. I thought it would be interesting to elaborate a bit on the visual elements of our header and how we hope they somehow suggest U-Church’s perspective. Scriptural references are inferred, but you’ll have to look them up yourself if you’re interested.
First, on the left, is the rather strange image of a man who is wearing a kind of clerical collar and a halo over his eyes. He is dropping a piece of paper into the slot of a locked box. This box suggests that the slip of paper is either a ballot or suggestion. The whole image has an antique feel with its rough edges and scratched surface.
The collar and halo, as in traditional iconography, suggests sainthood, but, in this case, of a decidedly quirky kind. The halo, which implies holiness, seems too big for him because it has slipped down over his head—or did he put it on that way? Either way, the halo is still shining even though it is clownishly displayed. Has the halo obscured the man’s vision or corrected it? Maybe it’s all a matter of perspective. At any rate, he seems able to fit the paper in the slot. And what about that paper and box? Whatever is on the paper, it must be important to the man. He is submitting it (blindly?) into the box to be counted (ballot) or at least considered (suggestion). Clearly the paper is meant for someone else’s eyes. The box, however, is plainly locked. Nobody, not even the man himself, can violate the sanctity of this mysterious “ark” of exchange. Once the man inserts his input, it is subject to laws and forces beyond his personal caprice. And yet, the man’s actions suggest he can trust the process, even though the picture implies his profound ignorance of anything beyond his rather limited capacities. On the whole, it’s a rather humorous image of human limitation and faith. It might even be considered pessimistic if it were not for the buoyant portrait on the far right.
Facing our idiosyncratic saint is one of the most recognizable portraits in the Western world. It’s a detail from Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel around 1511. Here is the imagined face of God, swirling with creative energy and wholly attentive to his creation. His eyes are fixed in artistic concentration and his countenance radiates joy. He is both fatherly and enigmatic, approachable and elusive. Above all, his face reveals that his creation matters to him. He is engaged.
In the header, God’s attention is riveted on our clownish man. There is no hint of displeasure in the awkward saint before him. He seems delighted in the man and vitally interested in what the man is doing. Is it for him that the man’s slip of paper is meant? Is he the one who unlocks the box? In God’s divine, loving gaze the bumbling saint—even with his persistent imperfections—is transfigured as the object of God’s robust pleasure. This is inexplicable, irreducible grace.
Between the images of saint and God flares our name and “slogo.” The roiling, flame-like background bridges the gap and functions artistically as the connection between the them. U-Church is what unifies what would otherwise be two distinct and separate images. U-Church is the interaction of the saint and his God, but it does not define either of them, The two images on either side define the center frame. In this way, the header forms a kind of triptych, a tree-part image that conveys a story or spiritual reality. The font used for U-Church is a bit scuffed as if from rough and tumble use, but the symbol of its redemption is clearly visible, a treasure in a font of clay. Just beneath floats our slogo, rendered in outlines, which suggests our expectations about this strange and audacious experience.
Altogether, the header serves as our own little icon. As such, it signifies the often exciting, though many times mysterious character of our collective relationship with God. If you’re not into icons, that’s okay. We don’t genuflect before our header anyway. Still, since we don’t have a cathedral to speak of, it’s the next best thing to a stained glass window.
