allusions

As most can obviously tell, the title of my blog in general is allusions. And, I’ve realized that I’ve never really explained my choice in title before. Perhaps you assumed that the word “allusions” alludes to my love of literature and literary devices. And, in some ways I suppose it does, but I’m sure that you’ve noticed that I rarely (if ever) make any literary allusions.

For those of you who just went, “huh?” perhaps I should explain what the word “allusion” actually means. A typical definition would be: “An indirect reference to some piece of knowledge not actually mentioned.”^[1] So, basically, an allusion is something that points to something else, without actually saying, “Hey, I’m point at that!”

So, basically, the way I see it is that we (and by “we” I mean all creation) are allusions to God. We do not always directly point to Him, but our mere existence makes allusion to Him. I have often thought about getting myself a little silicone bracelet that says “allusions” on it simply to remind myself that everyone is God’s creation. (However it’s impossible to find someplace to print just one of those things.)

Now, assuming everything in that last paragraph made sense, I’m going to delve into a second layer to this whole “allusions” matter. I believe that being an artist is being like God. Now, I understand that not everyone has great artistic skill, but I do believe that those given a gift to create artistically shares a commonality with the Creator of this beautiful existence. As Francis Shaeffer says (and I’ve quoted many times): “The Christian is the one whose imagination should fly beyond the stars.â€? We are constantly seeking to be more and more like the Creator, and in so doing we should find our creativity reaching beyond the bounds of typical human limitations. The second layer of the “allusions” title is that my artwork (though I hesitate to call it such) is also an allusion to God. My intention is for my work to speak beyond itself and call to mind a Higher Power.

Thus my art is an allusion; I am an allusion. Together, we are allusions.