Some Art to Ponder

For some reason today I was thinking about art I have seen in my life that has moved me. One piece that comes to mind is a video/sound installation that I saw at the Bellevue Art Museum with my sister about 5 years ago. It was called "He Weeps for You" by Bill Viola.

I wanted to share this work of art with all of you (though I fear it will not be as moving as it was in person). Here are a few photos and a description I was able to find online. "A drop of water emerging from a small brass valve is magnified by a video camera and projected on a large screen. The close-up image reveals that the viewer and a portion of the room are visible inside each forming drop. The drop swells and finally falls, and a loud sound is heard when it lands on an amplified drum. The entire room and persons in it are subject to the cadence of the falling drops, which continue in infinite repetition and reflection.

What an amazing concept! I love that I became a part of this work of art. It was a magical experience to walk into a dark room, see this strange contraption before me and watch as a drop of water gradually grow revealing a reflection of me. And when the drop fell it was as if my heart fell with it and I shuttered as the sound from the drum echoed in my ears. I have never been so moved by a piece of art!

So many thoughts swarm through my head as I think about the title, "He Weeps for You." Mostly I think about Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane the night that he was betrayed and arrested and the tears he shed as he thought about what was soon to take place. Did each of those tears contain a tiny reflection of the world God longed to save in that great sacrifice? Did the ground thunder as each tear fell and broke into a million peices? What tradgic beauty!