Abner & Aaron Zook art pieces

[the-real-steve]

Interesting, for sure!

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/ ... 30686.html

[Jazman]

A bit of self-disclosure... Abner & Aaron were/are my great uncles. My father and I both have an art streak... Dad has more time now and is churning out paintings...

[barnhart]

I heard second hand they did some wall sized carving for an Orthodox synagogue here in Brooklyn.

[Jazman]

I heard second hand they did some wall sized carving for an Orthodox synagogue here in Brooklyn.

I believe I heard that as well. I don't know if my dad would remember any more details about that or not.

[barnhart]

Anabaptist art is fascinating to me because of the historical ties to iconoclasm and rejection of the accumulated artistic expressions of the state churches. Choirs, cathedrals, stained glass, paintings, statuary ECT.. were considered useless or even dangerous, real worship is in the heart and is best done privately or in a setting of withdrawal from society.

I grew up with Sunday School materials and school curriculum with a minimalist view of art. Depictions were reluctant, vague and generalized. Music in Anabaptist culture and worship is often restrained, simple and repetitive with low value attached to individual expression and creativity coupled to an extremely high value of corporate expression.

Artistic expressions in my culture were coupled with practical arts like cooking, woodworking or sewing, so it makes me curious to see work like the Zook brothers that doesn't seem tied to a practical pursuit. I wonder how they conceptualized a life doing something with so little practical use. That level of skill takes commitment and I wonder how they jumped the wall of practicality.

[the-real-steve]

I'm not a music person, but I can appreciate those that have talent, be it singing or playing an instrument. Fun fact about me, I used to oil paint as a teenager and was commissioned different times to paint peoples' homesteads. I'm often tempted to pick up that again. When the pandemic was kickin' off I ordered a bunch or watercolor pencils, chalk, pastels and tablets in case I was gonna be locked down. Still have that in a box somewhere....

These days I've channeled my creativity into container gardening, largely flowers. Let's just say Home Depot got a lot of my money this past year