What do Mylie Cyrus, Keanu Reeves, Leonardo DaVinci, and Wolfgang Mozart have in common?  They all "Can't be Tamed"? No.  They all make action movies with little dialogue and plot because they can't act?  No, at least not all of them. Oddly, they are all considered artists. Art is such a diverse collection of form, use, and taste that it covers a multitude of people and offerings.

Underscoring the power of art is Grand Rapids' second offering of Artprize. Artprize is the world's largest competitive art competition offering the winner a $250,000 cash prize. Seventeen hundred artists displayed their entries at 192 locations around the city.

Artprize was not for everyone. If your idea of art is the lion on the Detroit Lions' helmets or the mustard stain on the UM helmets, then Artprize was probably not for you. (Deep authentic gold helmets are a different story. ) If your favorite color is camouflage and over half your wardrobe is from Cabelas, then Artprize was probably not for you. If you need Granimals to put together a matching outfit each morning, then Artprize was definitely not for you.

However, Artprize was for a lot of other people.

A quick rundown of my take on the top 10:

1.  Calvary                            Awesomeness amplified by doing it with a #2 pencil. Doodling on steroids. Interesting explanation of piece.

2.  Svelata                             Weird name - beautiful piece.

3.  Lure/Wave                    Cat got into the yarn. Represents mystical interconnection of the ones we are fated to be with. 3rd best? Not in my top 300. I'm probably not fated to meet this artist.

4.  Matter of Time              Captivating to look at. Driftwood will never look the same. Another pollution warning not rooted in a compelling narrative.

5.  Vision                               Cool to look at. Unique design. Lost appeal the more I looked at it.

6.  Helping Mom....            Coin collection gone wild. Cool but, (I hate to say what I'm about to say).....my kid's could have done it.

7.  Dancing with Lions     Sequel to the nail Moose from last year.  Unique and interesting. Voters sent message of "We like your work but you won't win."

8.  Salt and Earth                Amazing salt design. Pictures of cells around the perimeter were odd if not disturbing. b/t/w Who stepped in it and why?

9.  Steam Pig                         Seriously? Top Ten? Art? Looks like a prop for a new rib joint.

10. Elephant Walk              Token Kid's Museum entry.....sorry pachyderm groupies.

I loved some pieces, hated others, and thought some boldly stupid. If you went, you probably felt the same.Where we may disagree is the application of good, bad, and stupid. We all have opinions, but is there any objective view of art or is it all personal preference? Can we say Handel's "Messiah" is better art than Miley Cyrus' "Party in the USA," or is it just opinion?

Creating and experiencing art is a serious endeavor. Art is home turf for Christians. Beauty and truth are meant to come together in art and ultimately point to something beyond ourselves (God) in a creative way. Yet our artistic side is held captive by "reality" t.v., Disney Channel, romance novels, video games, sports t.v./radio, glamor magazines, etc.... Our interaction with the arts has become vicarious, voyeuristic, and virtual.  Many Christians cannot or do not enter this arena meaningfully any more.

We have abandoned the entire field to personal preference. We give ourselves over to whatever tickles our emotions and immediate passions. If it takes work, patience, or heaven forbid - study, we breeze past it in favor of the newest pop schlock.

This is not OK. Our laziness here has had staggering ramifications over the years. More harm has been done than we are courageous enough to contemplate.

Truth and beauty find their home in God. Consequently, art can and should be evaluated on its ability to speak through our imaginations about the things of God and to stir deep longings for the profound truth of our creator. In a way, good art beckons us to our origins and enlivens the image that God used to shape our being. Good art is complex, takes skill to produce, and can be absorbed at many levels. Good art is original, but builds off of things that are timeless and transcendent.

The modern art discussion seems to be devoid of any consideration that Satan knows good art is dangerous, and so offers us a potpourri of empty and damaging substitutes. The Christ follower must be engaged here. As I said earlier, this is our home turf. Yet we must engage with discernment and insistence, that though it is mysterious, a framework of objectivity must be developed and used.

The modern art world seems to have a few dominant trends. A piece is valued because it is shocking. It's as if your piece has no value unless it upsets and disturbs traditional "oppressive" thinking. This applies especially to Christian "oppressive" thinking. A piece is valued because it is totally obscure. You look at it or hear it and it points to nothing. That is because all meaning is subjective so the thought of pointing to something objective is "oppressive". To the "oppressive" and "narrow minded" viewer these works look just plain stupid. Finally, a piece is valued because it is sexually explicit. This breaks with the moral straight jacket put on by Christianity over the years. Culture is liberated by explicit sexuality, particularly same-sex sexuality. Unfortunately, no one can explain what we are supposedly liberated into.

Beware! There is error in the other direction. Overly sentimental, shallow, and empty Christian art is pumped out faster than you can say Amy Gr.....sorry.....I'd better not name names. We do as much harm portraying God, life, and truth in overly simplistic, mind emptying ways. Sometimes we seem to think if it comes from a Christian label, publisher or producer, it is good art. Unfortunately that is not always true.

We also need to keep in mind that we are all made in God's image and often profoundly pagan people unexpectedly create art that points to beauty and truth that can only come from God. Why and how God does this is startling at times until I consider that He chose me to be his child and that reality is more startling and confusing.....but much appreciated.

Enjoy and embrace the arts, but do not be a lazy taker of short cuts. Turn off your TV. Read the stories of Scripture as stories. Read good literature.  Watch fewer and better movies. Create your own art by writing, painting, playing, etc.... Engage your family in good art and good art discussions. Discernment comes over time with good work. In the end you, your family and community will be better for it.