Enjoy a gallery display of original works by artists of all ages. Everyone is welcome, so bring a friend!
– Learn from artists describing their creative process.
– Listen to live performances of talented musicians.
– Sip coffee and tea.
Live performances include:
The 3+1 String Quartet
The 3+1 String Quartet was founded in 2018 by three violinist-violists, three alumni of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and three faculty members of Wheaton College. The 3+1 quartet featured alongside singer Camila Meza in 2019 at the Chicago Jazz Festival and has performed in educational concerts ranging from Montessori schools and junior high schools to the faculty recital series at Wheaton College and the College of DuPage. In addition to the mainstream quartet repertoire, 3+1 also enjoys exploring the music of Schickele, Bartók, the Danish String Quartet, and other eclectic works.
The 3+1 string quartet concertizes in the greater Chicago area and is currently comprised of violinist Addie Gannon, violinist-violists Lee Joiner and Lilian Chou, and cellist Diane Chou. Three are former students of Dr. Lee Joiner.
Painter Lewis Achenbach
Painter Lewis Achenbach interprets the music and atmosphere of an event in his artwork in the moment.
“It started with documenting live music through an imaginative process, but it has become much more.
“It now feels like a translation or an amalgam of two languages. To hear this painting is a meeting place of the sonic and visual arts.” More here
Hammer Dulcimer Musician Devin Pohly
Devin Pohly is an assistant professor of computer science at Wheaton College. He first saw a hammered dulcimer on a family vacation in the Smokies, and he picked up the instrument himself in 2017 after finishing college and moving to Illinois. When not writing code or playing music, he can usually be found dancing, calling, or composing contra dances.
Saturday, February 1, 2-5pm
- Invite friends for original art and conversation in the culmination of this year’s festival
- Special live music performances by talented musicians in our community.
- Enjoy homemade baked goods by gifted bakers. (Sign up to contribute your baked treat here.)
Invite your friends and neighbors to the Gallery Exhibit of original visual art, creative writing, and music by artists of all ages and levels at Resurrection! Discover how the these original pieces reflect this year’s RezArts Festival theme, “Built Together in Love.”
Learn how the Lord worked in our children, youth, and adults as they created. Many people take a step of courage to share their work publicly, often overcoming shyness or anxiety. Come and support them!
Live Music Performances
Enjoy live music by talented Rez musicians:
2-3pm hammered dulcimer musician Dr. Devin Pohly
3:10-4:10pm harpist Hannah Muzzy
4:20-4:50pm string trio with cellist Ruth Mudge and violinists Katie Abernethy and Meghan Razzini
Dr. Devin Pohly is Associate Professor of Computer Science at Wheaton College. He first saw a hammered dulcimer on a family vacation in the Smokies, and he picked up the instrument himself in 2017 after finishing college and moving to Illinois. When not writing code or playing music, he can usually be found dancing, calling, or composing contra dances.
Hannah Muzzy began piano lessons at age six but at age 14 she saw a picture of a harp in a book and just knew she had to play that instrument. Hannah has enjoyed performing for numerous private functions and concerts including the Memphis Symphony, Masterworks Festival Orchestra, various choirs, and especially with her husband Jake across the U.S. and on tour in Argentina.
String Trio
Ruth Mudge (below right), cellist, is on faculty at the String Academy of Chicago and serves as Assistant Principal Cellist of the Elmhurst Symphony. She regularly performs in a variety of contexts around the Chicago area, including classical chamber music and on the worship music band at Rez.
Katie Abernethy (below center) began taking Suzuki violin lessons just before she turned five. She is still making music today through teaching at the String Academy of Chicago and performing with the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra, as well as playing on the worship team at Resurrection.
Meghan Razzini (below left) is a violist and teacher who loves to bring the joy of music to her students. In addition to teaching, Meghan performs with the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra and collaborates with various chamber ensembles.
Top two photos by Michael Johns
Theme: “The Art of Work: Our Daily Labors Made Holy”
We invite you to contribute to our RezArts Festival, a church-wide celebration of art this fall and winter. Whether you’re age 5 or 95, a beginner or experienced artist, you can participate. All regular attendees of Rez, no matter your age, are welcome to create with us.
We invite you to reflect on moments in your everyday work and life where you meet the Lord.
“[Vocation] is the truth that God calls us to himself so decisively that everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion, dynamism, and direction lived out as a response to his summons and service.” -Os Guinness
For most of us, following God’s calling feels quite ordinary from day to day. The everyday moments of our vocations can seem inconsequential. But Paul’s letter to the Colossians upholds the commonplace as sacred: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (3:17).
We are exhorted to consecrate the entirety of our lives to the Lord, whether we eat, drink, work, sleep. The mundane and the transcendent become intertwined as we live in Christ. We are “built up” in him (Col. 2:7), even as we pursue our everyday tasks and relate with one another.
Because the fullness of who we are is infused by the Holy Spirit, even amid our simple daily duties and interactions, we can glimpse the beauty of God’s presence. We invite you to consider moments of your everyday work where you have encountered the Lord. How have you met him in the mundane of washing dishes, responding to emails, tackling your boss’s urgent request, studying for a test, changing diapers, and more?
In what moments of your vocation have you known the Lord is working within you? When have you been strengthened, received the Lord’s peace, been filled with gratitude, joy, self control, or patience? When have you known that you are working alongside the Lord in his work?
Identify moments when you have caught sight of God’s transcendent power in your vocation. Consider how you could express one of these occasions in a poem or story, a sculpture, painting, a knit creation, or even a Lego design.
Invite the Lord into your creative process. Set aside a period of time to create. Try to avoid rushing to complete your project. Set it aside when you’re tired or frustrated. Pick it up again after a pause or another day. Continue to invite the Lord to join you. Show your work to a trusted friend to ask for feedback. Modify your piece.
Creative Prompts
-What are some common, but life-giving, phrases you say or hear everyday (at work, home, with kids, friends or strangers), that seem to roll off the tongue without a thought? For example, “take care,” “great job on this,” “drive safe,” “take your time,” or “let me know if you need anything.” Was there a time when someone said something very ordinary to you that ended up encouraging you in a greater way than expected?
-Is there a repetitive or mundane activity in your everyday life which could become a means of prayer? For example, chopping vegetables, folding laundry, driving your morning commute, or simply going up or down stairs. Practice praying while engaging in these activities and see what the Lord brings to your attention. Use this as a starting place for a visual or written piece.
– Pay attention to light as you go about your daily work. Are there moments where light seems to bring a tangible reminder of the presence of God in your ordinary work? For example, window light angling in upon dishes drying in the dish rack, the deep shadows of wrinkled, work-worn hands, or the jumping light cast by the face of your wristwatch.
– Pay attention to texture in your work: are there any patterns, marks, or sensations which your daily activities involve? The pattern of your duvet as you make your bed, the footprint of your snow boots leaves as you go out to shovel the driveway, lifted veins of the leaves you notice as you rake the front yard.
– In what part of your work do you feel misunderstood, underappreciated, or unseen? Invite Jesus into this feeling or space and watch to see what he does. Create something in response.
Everyday Work & God’s Presence
- What are the things you do that take work and focus? (like school, sports, play, chores, caring for a pet, or even brushing your teeth) Think about the little parts and the big parts of your tasks. What are the beautiful parts? How do you show love to others while doing these things?
- When you have playtime or free time, what do you enjoy doing the most? How does doing that make you feel?
- When you do homework or study, what subject or task brings you joy?
- What do you think it means to “do everything in the name of Jesus”?
God in the Ordinary
- What part of your day feels special, even though it’s simple?
- When do you talk to God during your day?
- Have you noticed anything around your room, in your house, or backyard which was especially interesting, beautiful, or exciting? This could be something small or ordinary (like sunlight, soap bubbles, or a pencil).
After you have thought about the special, ordinary moments in your life and work, think about how you want to express them. Here are some ideas of where to start.
- When you have play time or free time, do you enjoy making anything, perhaps with legos, clay, paper, or pencils? Start with these materials, and make something that shows where you see God in your everyday life.
- Do you like to play pretend? Explorers, house, teacher, town, or cowboys? Draw, write, build, or create something inspired by what you like to play.
- Draw or create a picture of yourself or someone you love doing a simple job — and show how God’s love might be shining through it.
- Write a poem or song lyrics about how it feels to finish a job well, or describing a small moment in your day when you felt joy.
- Write a short story about someone who finds God while doing something ordinary
You can ask God to help you. Making this art is work too, and God wants to meet you in it.
Videos
Fr. Steve’s Creative Process. Glean tips from Father Steve’s 3 C’s process of creating original art, music, and more: Contemplate, Create, Critique/Collaborate. See the section below for more details.
Nihonga Slow Art: Artist Makoto Fujimura reflects on the process of creating beauty out of brokenness as a metaphor for the redemptive power of the Gospel. In Japanese art, the process of creating itself is as important as the end product.
Books
The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence. A 17th century Carmelite monk, Brother Lawrence felt God’s presence and conversed with him even while washing pots and pans in the monastery kitchen.
Every Moment Holy Volume I: New Liturgies for Daily Life (Over 100 Prayers and Illustrations for Practicing Mindfulness of the Presence of God in the Ordinary) by Douglas Kaine McKelvey with wood block illustrations by Ned Bustard
Prayers for the Pilgrimage: A Book of Collects for All of Life by David O. Taylor with illustrations by Phaedra Taylor
Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life by Tish Harrison Warren
Illustrated children’s books
The Uncorker of Ocean Bottles, by Micuelle Cuevas, illustrated by Erin E. Stead
Thunder Cake, Patricia Pilacco
The Gardener, by Sarah Stewart, illustrated by David Small
Visual art
- French impressionist Camille Pissarro’s paintings of rural laborers and daily lives of common people in natural settings, such as “The Gardner – Old Peasant with Cabbage” and “Haymaking, Ergany”
- Canadian painter Emily Carr’s work celebrates humble materials and labor; she infused her art with worshipful attention. Her sweeping, abstracted trees and skies evoke the presence of God in creation. See “Scorned as Timber, Beloved of the Sky.”
- Abstract painter Mark Rothko invested deeply in his seemingly simple color block paintings. He was almost scientific in the colors and combinations he chose to evoke emotions in his viewers. See “Orange and Yellow.”
- Contemporary Still Life of ordinary objects by American artist Roy Lichtenstein
- Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer’s The Milkmaid and The Little Street depicting ordinary life scenes of villagers
- American artist Henry Ossawa Tanner captures the dignity and joy of passing on a skill from one generation to the next, juxtaposing past hardship with future hope, in The Banjo Lesson
Poems
- Gerhard Manley Hopkins’ poem “As Kingfishers Catch Fire”
- Wendell Berry’s poem “Whatever is foreseen in joy”
- Mary Oliver’s poem, “Work, Sometimes,” describes the burden of daily work and the blessing of pausing to take in natural beauty.
Songs
Enjoy these songs by Christian artist Sarah Groves while you consider creating a visual or written piece. Her lyrics vulnerably address hard questions and convey simple theological truths found in everyday life. (Please note, this year’s categories do not include recorded music. Song lyrics are included in the writing category.)
As you engage with this year’s theme, we invite you to try the three Cs creative process that Fr. Steve Williamson employs:
Contemplate
Create
Critique
We encourage you to join with others in any or all of these three Cs of creativity. You can also add the fourth C and Collaborate. Watch Fr. Steve’s video and read the details below.
1. Contemplate:
Ask God to fill you with his Holy Spirit and to communicate both to you and through you. Ponder. Pray. Listen. Journal. Converse with others. The depth of your piece will be born from this stage.
2. Create:
Write, carve, paint, sew, sculpt, draw… Engage intuitively. Collaborate with others or work in solitude.
What has risen to the surface in your contemplations? Choose a particular image, longing, question, or phrase as a starting point for your artwork.
What media, colors, sounds, and styles communicate that concept? For example, the church as a unified whole made of many pieces might be communicated through a mosaic, a quilt, a choral song, or a found poem. Let the message of your piece come through the form, not just the content.
Good art communicates intuitively, often bypassing our logical minds and speaking straight to the heart. Your piece need not be a direct portrayal of the passage or the theme.
3. Critique:
Evaluate your work. Ask others for feedback. Make changes.
Critique is not about pointing out faults or feeling bad, nor is it about perfection. Rather, it’s about giving and receiving constructive feedback on the work. What about the piece is good? Why? What doesn’t work? Can that be improved? Does the piece convey what you intend?
Once you have created a piece, set it aside for a day or two, then revisit it. How does it impact you as a whole? Any changes needed?
Ask friends or mentors for feedback. Be specific about what you want, and be open to receiving constructive feedback and making changes.
”What do you think of this?” is a broad question and not likely to lead to helpful feedback. Instead try asking specific questions such as “What emotions does this piece evoke in you?” or “Would you give feedback on the plot and character development in this short story?” or “Do you notice any ways I could improve the composition of this painting?”
If you are not willing to make changes to a specific aspect of the piece, don’t ask for feedback on that part.
Decide when to be done.
The act of creating art can be one of worship and prayer as you submit your creativity to the Lord. As our Creator, the Artist of the universe invites us to be co-creators. While your finished art may or may not be a masterpiece, it can help others better appreciate the Lord’s heart for his people. Even if you don’t consider yourself an artist, we invite you to try your hand at creating art as an act of worship. You may ultimately decide not to submit your work to the Festival, but do consider participating in the creative process with this focus in mind.
We hope to see a reflection of how the Lord is leading you and our church body in this particular season. Thus, all submissions should be new creations made during the festival in order to reveal the Lord’s leading for this time in our Body.
We will share select submissions online and on social media throughout the Festival and beyond. The Festival will culminate with a Gallery Exhibit of all family-appropriate submissions. This will be open to the entire church on Saturday, January 31. Visual artwork or poetry that can be exhibited safely on a wall will continue to be displayed as much as possible until Sunday, February 15, after both services.
Jumpstart your creativity on Wednesday, January 11, 6:30-8:00 or 8:30pm.
Try a workshop in visual arts, devotional poetry writing, or worship song writing.
RSVP below.
Devotional Poetry Writing
Discover how to enrich your devotional life by writing poetry. You’ll learn new tools and practices for engaging with Scripture by penning your own poetry. This workshop will include hands-on writing time, as well as the opportunity for small group sharing and mutual encouragement. Minimum age: high school. This workshop concludes at 8:30pm.
Facilitator: Andrew S. Backer 
enjoys writing poetry devotionally and finds it a place to witness the beauty of the Lord and respond in worship. He is currently pursuing a Masters in Higher Education and Student Development at Wheaton College.
Assistant Facilitator: Helen Wieger enjoys creative writing and has been nurturing a group of creatives for the last several years. She leans toward penning poetry and creative prose.
Visual Arts
Janice Skivington Wood is a painter, illustrator,
and former art teacher. She has collaborated with various artists to develop liturgical art that adorns Resurrection, including the large Jesus icon, the great doors, paintings depicting Old Testament scenes in the narthex, and more.
Emily Verdoorn uses anything from 
pen and pencil to teabags, inks, thread, or homemade dyes to explore the world of her everyday life. Her work often begins like a quiet conversation with places, spaces and the natural world.
Worship Song-Writing
You may submit once in each category. (This year’s Festival categories do not include recorded music.)
Traditional Visual Media
Such as drawing, painting, pottery, knitting, wood carving, sculpture, textile, original Lego creations, leatherworks, etc. Must not exceed 3 feet by 3 feet.
Writing
Such as poetry, short stories, song lyrics, personal essays, flash fiction, devotionals, monologues, and scenes. Length: 1,500 words or less.
Digital Art
Such as photography, digital painting or drawing, 3-D printing, etc. Must not exceed 3 feet by 3 feet.
Visual
Such as drawing, painting, photography, pottery, sculpture, textile, crafts and digital art. Artwork that will be physically displayed in its original medium cannot exceed 3 feet by 3 feet.
Written
Such as poetry, short stories, personal essays, flash fiction, devotionals, monologues, and scenes. Length: 1,500 words or less.
Musical
Voice and/or instrumental. Length: 4 minutes or less
Artisan Baked Good
Pastry, cake, bread or other artisan baked good to serve 10 or more people.
Do you dream of creating your next profiterole pastry, three-layer cake, or sourdough loaf? Enjoy experimenting with flavors and using special ingredients to create unique and delightful treats?
We invite you to employ your baking talents and create for the RezArts Festival. Enable our church community and friends to savor your artisan bread or decadent pastry at the Gallery Exhibit on Saturday, January 27. Every bite will bring them delight!
Submit an online description of your baked good and ingredients in the online submission form here by Monday, January 15, 11:59pm.
Then deliver your fresh baked goods with a serving utensil to RezCafe on Saturday, January 27, between 1-1:30pm. We’ll serve up your treat for all to enjoy, first-come, first-serve.
Please prepare enough to serve at least 10 people, the more the better! Your treat must be ready to serve. Label your creation and a serving utensil with your name.
- All submissions must be original works, previously unpublished and/or not performed publicly, and may not have been shared online or on the artists’ social media.
- Submissions should be new creations made during this particular season in order to reveal the Lord’s leading during this time in our Body.
- Participants must be regular attendees of Church of the Resurrection over the last three months.
- Each person or group may only submit one entry per category, up to three entries total.
- Group submissions are allowed if all individuals are active attendees or members.
- All entries must be submitted online by midnight Central Time, Saturday, January 17, 2025. Visual art and printed submissions must be delivered to the church by Friday, January 23, 1pm. Please leave submissions upstairs in the print room.
- Art that includes nudity, profanity, graphic violence or otherwise inappropriate content for young children will not be considered.
- Participants agree to allow the Resurrection to publish digital files of all submissions both online and/or in print, on its website and/or social media channels, both during and after the festival indefinitely with appropriate credit.
- Participants grant Resurrection non-exclusive rights to use their submissions in ministry, including but not limited to services, events, public displays, or performances, publications, sites, and programs, without further permission or payment involved, with appropriate credit to the artist(s).
- The RezArts Festival will include a gallery exhibit on Saturday, January 31, at which time submissions will be displayed and presented for the enjoyment of the church and any guests. Everyone is welcome. Contributors to the Arts Festival should plan to attend the Exhibit. Visual art submissions that can be safely displayed on a wall will remain within the church building until February 15.
While we will do our best to care for your submission(s), we cannot guarantee the preservation of your artwork in its original form. We also reserve the right not to exhibit any piece we deem inappropriate for a family audience
- Each work must be submitted online (submission form coming soon) via an individual digital file– a Word document, a photo(s) of visual or digital artwork in PDF, JPG or PNG files.
- Traditional visual art submissions may include up to 4 photos of your submission, such as a photo of your painting, a pottery work, or a sculpture. However, if your submission is digital art, then only one photo is allowed.
- Visual art submissions of the actual artwork must be delivered to Resurrection in person by Friday, January 23, 1pm to participate in the gallery exhibit and should be left at the building until Sunday, February 15 after both services.
- Please mount and/or frame your visual art submission for display before dropping off, so that it can be exhibited on the wall. Visual works (pottery, sculpture, knitted pieces, etc) that are not prepared with hanging hardware may not be displayed after February 1 due lack of protected space in the narthex.
- Poetry that fits on a single page may be framed or mounted for display with the title and author’s name at the top. It must be dropped off before Friday, January 23, 1pm to participate in the gallery exhibit and should be left at the building until Sunday, February 15 after both services.
- Include a paragraph of 150 words or less explaining: a) your work (size and medium for visual art), b) your creative process, and c) how your entry reflects the theme in part or whole. In addition, please submit a 1-2 sentence bio in which you may include your social media handle, personal blog or website where you share your creative work. d) a price if your work is for sale, and contact information. e) A digital headshot is optional in case we share your work on our blog.
- Questions? Email dawnjewell@churchrez.org
Form coming soon… Please complete one form for each submission.
Find inspiration, insights, and tips for sparking your creativity in these resources and submissions from past RezArts Festivals:
By Fellow Rez Members
The Four Little Pigs
Sub-Creators: Mimicking the Creator’s artistry
Paradise Lost?
Art, Faith, and John 15: A Conversation with Hip-Hop Artist and Pastor Jonathan Brooks
Steps for Putting “Abide in me” into Practice
Winter Musings
Her Love Foretells
How to Prune a Grapevine
A Woman Held God Poem
Avent Maranatha Poem
RezArts Festival Submission: Open Offering
Overcome Your Fear: Create for the RezArts Festival
Other Resources on Art and Theology
Articles
“A Letter to A Young Artist” by Makoto Fujimura
“On Unnecessarily Owning Art” by Karen Stiller. An essay by author and wife Karen Stiller reflecting on her commitment to owning artwork as a Christian.
“The Creative Process” by James Baldwin in James Baldwin: Collected Essays. A 1962 essay by secular novelist James Baldwin describing the role of the artist in society, resonating with a biblical understanding of an artist’s role. (Note: Link is to an abridged version of the essay published by Plough)
“On Fairy-Stories” by J.R.R. Tolkien in Tales from the Perilous Realm. A 1939 essay by fantasy author and philologist J.R.R. Tolkien arguing for the redemptive value of fantasy literature
“Nourishing Our Souls” by Denis Haack at The Ransom Fellowship. A blog post in which Anglican author Denis Haack contends for the imperative need for beauty in the Christian life.
Websites
Christians in the Visual Arts
Visual Commentary on Scripture directed by Ben Quash, King’s College London. A beautiful resource that features artwork paired with scripture passages, along with accompanying essays by different scholars on various Scripture passages. (Note: Some scholars, such as Malcolm Guite, are Christian, but others are not).
Books
Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on community, calling and the mystery of making by Andrew Peterson
Art & the Bible by Francis A. Schaeffer. A short book containing two of Christian thinker Schaeffer’s thoughts on the relationship between art, the church, and the Bible
Culture Care by painter Makoto Fujimura. A manifesto on the role of artists in the church and in society.
Faith and Art: A theology of making by Makoto Fujimura
For the Beauty of the Church edited by W. David O. Taylor. An anthology of essays by artists, pastors, and scholars on the relationship between the arts and the Church.
The Mind of the Maker by Dorthy Sayers
On Beauty & Being Just by Elaine Scarry (also available in book form). Philosopher Scarry’s 1998 lectures on the power of beauty to bring about justice in society.
Placemaking and the Arts: Cultivating the Christian Life by Jennifer Allen Craft
The Prophetic Imagination by Walter Brueggemann
Walking on Water: Reflections on faith and art by Madeleine L’Engle
Videos
You’re Included- Music & Theology by Jeremy Begbie
“Bono & Eugene Peterson: THE PSALMS” by Fuller Studio. A 30-minute documentary, spearheaded by Anglican theologian W. David O. Taylor, in which rock musician and author Bono (Paul Hewson) and theologian Eugene Peterson discuss the artistic beauty of the Psalms.
Podcasts
“Art and the Church” with Eric O. Jacobsen and Sara Joy Proppe on The Embedded Church Podcast. A 2022 podcast episode funded by Duke Divinity School’s Ohmond Center, featuring conversations with pastors, artists, and Christian thinkers on how the Church might serve the arts in the twenty-first century.
“Beauty Will Save the World: An Interview with Brian Zahnd” with Stephen Roach on the Makers & Mystics Podcast (published in two parts: Part 1 & Part 2). Artist Stephen Roach interviews pastor Brian Zahnd, author of Beauty Will Save the World, on the role of the arts in evangelism.
“Longing and Beauty” with Dr. Curt Thompson, MD on the Being Known Podcast. In a 2021 podcast, Christian psychiatrist Curt Thompson reflects on the innate human desire, and need for, beauty in life.