Column: Bev Jackson Cotter, Art Is…

Is it a coincidence that the word art is part of the word heart? And is it another coincidence that as I ponder the theme of this column, that thought keeps wandering through my head? Is it more important this time of the year than any other?

When we look at the beautiful Christmas decorations that surround us everywhere we go, it is easy to see the artistry that is involved in each design — the sparkling snowflakes and happy Santas and gorgeous ornaments and snowy window decorations and beautiful wreaths and elegant bells and colorful tablecloths and creative centerpieces and wonderful stories and songs — each designed by an artist.

But there’s more to Christmas art than drawing and painting and sculpting and writing.

One of my first art teachers told our class, “A laborer works with his hands, a craftsman works with his hands and head, and an artist works with his hands, his head and his heart.” That quote came back to me recently as I looked at my nativity scenes, each made with hands and head and heart.

My favorite, purchased when our children were small, is made up of plaster figures no more than five inches tall and a rather flimsy wooden stable. I purchased Mary and Joseph, three shepherds, three wise men, a cow, a camel, three sheep, an angel, the manger and the stable for less than $6. In fact, I bought everything but the baby Jesus a few days before Christmas. The Ben Franklin Store in the Skyline Plaza was sold out of the most important piece. We had to wait another year to complete the setting. I still put this nativity scene up every December. It wouldn’t be Christmas without it.

Since that time, other nativities have been added — a stylized wooden setting of modern design, an elegant china nativity by Lenox, a ceramic grouping by Hummel, a simple design of one piece, Joseph, Mary and the Christ child, carved of olive wood by an artist in the Holy Land, and a solid piece of etched glass — each setting created by a different artist with different skills.

Do you think that as an artist works on the mold or the hand painting of a figure from that most holy setting, that he or she is aware of the heart part of creating? I hope so.

I believe that it is the heart in a piece of art that makes it come alive, the soul an artist includes in his work. It happens because he needs to create, not to display or to sell, but because he needs to create.

For hundreds of years, artists have been reproducing the scene in the stable. You find it in stained glass church windows, in altar paintings, in sculptures, in life size outdoor settings and in live nativity scenes. Each is different, some humble and others of elegant design, some very realistic and others more abstract. Each is beautiful in its own way and meaningful to the artists involved with its design, and to the viewers.

While you enjoy the hustle and bustle of the holidays, please take the time to pause and to reflect on the art and the heart of Christmas.

Merry Christmas to all of you from the Albert Lea Art Center.

Bev Jackson Cotter is a member of the Albert Lea Art Center where the annual Festival of Trees will be on display through Dec. 31. The Art Center is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.