Russ Ramsey is a pastor at Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, where he lives with his wife and four children. He grew up in the fields of Indiana and studied at Taylor University and Covenant Theological Seminary (MDiv, ThM).
'Art and the act of creating is essential. We must remember that
without it, we would not be here. To notice beauty is to be fully
alive and without the act of intimately engaging life, we are numb
to ourselves and to the world around us. Ramsey points us towards
God through the raw, sensual power of the art, disrupting our
unconscious lives that often want to grasp for whatever makes us
un-feel.'
* Wayne Brezinka, award-winning artist and illustrator *
'Encountering paintings drawings and sculpture as a little boy set
me up for my life arc. Encountering Christ set me up for a lifelong
love affair with my creator. Russ has gone to great lengths to
examine art and faith in a way that helps us define our path
forward. Art making is sometimes a lonely experience relying on
one's own imagination and talent. This book illustrates the tight
wire one must balance on to find the peace and beauty in
expression. It's often difficult to maintain balance with all life
offers is pulling on us. Rembrandt in the wind helps us find a way
forward by the examples and stories of art makers who have gone
before us.'
* Jimmy Abegg, visual artist and musician with Rich Mullins and
the Ragamuffin Band, Charlie Peacock, and Steve Taylor and the
Perfect Foil *
'Here's what I love about Russ Ramsey's latest project--it
understands down deep that Truth is exclusive to no party or sect;
that Goodness arrives in the form of the lonely, the ill, and the
outcast; and that Beauty, amid the church's moral twilight, might
be the last apologetic that holds.'
* Leif Enger, Bestselling Author of Virgil Wander and Peace Like
A River *
'In days fractured by those who aim to seize power, darkened by
those who play dirty politics, and clouded by those who use
platforms to polarize, perhaps the artists can lead us home. The
artists featured in these pages, artists who devoted their life and
work to what is good, true, and beautiful, remind us that we
can--and should--do the same.'
* Karen Swallow Prior, Research Professor of English and
Christianity & Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
and author of On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life through Great
Books *
'It is easy to believe that enjoying and understanding 'Art' is
only for those who have a PhD in Art History. Russ Ramsey reminds
us how simple and holy it is to be stirred by the mystery of
images.'
* John Hendrix, author/illustrator of The Faithful Spy: Dietrich
Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler *
'Ramsey is a deep lover of art and a student of art history. In
this book he takes the reader on an amazing guided tour through an
art museum that doesn't exist. In this carefully curated collection
of art from around the world, he offers you an experience that only
someone who really loves art can. This book inspires the reader to
engage art in an eye-opening way and understand how these famous
works of art bring glory to God.'
* Ned Bustard, is the illustrator of the Every Moment Holy
series, Creative Director of Square Halo Books, and the artist and
author of History of Art: Creation through Contemporary *
'Ramsey leads us well into one of the best possible uses of our
time--engaging with art and beauty.'
* Mark Maggiori is an award-winning painter of the American
West *
'Russ Ramsey doesn't just see some of the wonders seen and painted
by great artists of the past, but even more wonderfully, he helps
us see them too. Yet it is full of surprises. What he offers is
never a matter of beauty for its own sake, although we are drawn
into a glorious journey of beauty down the ages; nor is it one of
artistic skills and accomplishments, although every one of the
artists he focuses on could easily claim to have mastered their
art; nor even can this book be distilled into a mere, fascinating
overview of five centuries of human creativity (even though the
story told provides a superb entry-point to the novice keen to
learn more). The greatest joy of this book, however, is that the
accumulative effect of these nine artists has helped me glimpse
something of the world and of humanity as God our Creator sees us.
And what a gift that is!'
* Mark Meynell, Director (Europe & Caribbean), Langham
Partnership, writer and cultural critic: A Wilderness of Mirrors
and When Darkness Seems My Closest Friend *
'Russ Ramsey has gone deep into the histories of nine artists and
their masterworks, revealing how each struggled--in both their
giftedness and fallenness--to create beauty. I am reminded anew of
how beauty leads us to God, 'the Author of beauty.' I cannot wait
to share this book!'
* Debbie Taylor, visual artist *
'Russ Ramsey was kind enough to give me an early chapter of this
book a few years ago when I was preparing to go on a silent retreat
and asked him for a work of art I might spend some time meditating
on during my weekend away. Thanks to Russ's recommendation, I spent
hours contemplating Rembrandt's painting, The Storm on the Sea of
Galilee. I was shaken by the depiction of this scene and the
disciples' question to Jesus, 'Do you not care that we are
perishing?' Russ's gentle shepherding of my understanding regarding
the painting and the Biblical story behind it was a balm in my life
just when I needed it. I know that this book will be the same for
you.'
* Shawn Smucker, author of The Day the Angels Fell and The
Weight of Memory *
'Sometimes, when standing at a museum, I think to myself 'I wish
somebody who knows something would explain this to me.' And I look
around and see, on one side of me, someone expertly pointing out
every intricacy in the painting and, on the other, someone bored
and looking at a phone in hand. Somehow this book is able to
captivate people in all those categories. In this book, Russ Ramsey
walks us through a museum of artists and art works, showing how
each of them illuminates something about God, humanity, and the
meaning of life. And this book does so in a way that won't bore the
expert or intimidate the novice. Those who love art will find here
new paths to the gospel. And those who love the gospel will find
that they can love art. That's a lot to ask from a book, and this
one delivers.'
* Russell Moore, Director of Christianity Today’s Public Faith
Project *
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