Freaky Friday: Peace and love abound

Rather uplifting art news this morning. No masterpieces stolen or drawn on with crayon, no street artist getting arrested or--more likely--selling out, no grotesque fart of a piece going for millions at auction. Instead there was mature dialogue that fostered understanding. Hmmm....I'll put it down to Freaky Friday.

 Read on:

Enrique Chagoya makes peace with Loveland, Colorado: Agrees to depict a loving Jesus

Last week, I posted about a woman who walked into the Loveland Museum/Gallery and destroyed a piece of artwork by Enrique Chagoya. I questioned at the end of my article whether critiques with the weight and emotional volume of Chagoya’s print – which depicted Jesus in sexual acts (a Christian favourite) and an Islamic prophet kneeling before pigs, among other things.

Under normal circumstances, the immoral act of destroying ones art would likely make an artist completely irate. Chagoya, however, has agreed to work with the pastor of Loveland’s Resurrection Fellowship church to create a piece of artwork depicting Jesus in a positive light. Pastor Jonathan Wiggins wrote Chagoya after opposition to the artwork began asking if Chagoya would be able to “offer [his] artistic ability and compose an image of Christ representing love and understanding, something precious.”

Chagoya agreed, and the project has received overwhelming approval from the 1,400-member congregation, according to the Denver Post, who quoted pastor Wiggins as saying that “we had standing ovations at the end.” Six members of the congregation are said to have walked out in protest of the redemption efforts.

More here at Art Threat.

n