Overview

Is it possible to consider art-making as a spiritual practice independent of explicit religious belief or content? This open access collection establishes a new paradigm that changes the conversation surrounding the spiritual significance of art. Where earlier research has focused on the religious significance of secular artworks, this innovative volume turns its attention to the role of the artist, and to specific examples of art practices, putting them into conversation with particular ritual practices. By creating a web of connections that emerge across multiple disciplines and practices, a team of scholars and artist shed new light on the way art-making and ritual embody non-discursive forms of understanding. Drawing on the work of scholars who argue that ritual practice is central to religious identities, they use close analysis of specific examples to address philosophical issues about the nature of knowledge and spirituality and the relationship between them. Bringing a practice-centered approach to the study of religion and the arts, this is a rich and in-depth examination of the possibility that art has spiritual meanings that are endemic to the practice of art-making itself. The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the Templeton Religious Trust.

Full Product Details

Author:   Dr Lexi Eikelboom (Australian Catholic University, Australia) ,  Dr David Newheiser (Florida State University, Florida, US)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Dimensions:   Width: 16.00cm , Height: 2.40cm , Length: 23.60cm
Weight:   0.640kg
ISBN:  

9781350474185

ISBN 10:   1350474185
Pages:   328
Publication Date:   18 September 2025
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION Lexi Eikelboom PART I: FRAMES 1. RELIGION, ART, RITUAL: THE HISTORY OF CONCEPTS, THE OPERATION OF POWER, David Newheiser 2. METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGES IN ADDRESSING KNOWLEDGE AND SPIRITUALITY ACROSS PRACTICE AND DISCOURSE, Lexi Eikleboom PART II: PRACTICES MOVEMENT 3. THE CHRISTIAN EUCHARIST: VULNERABILITY AND PRECARITY, Natalie Carnes 4. HEATHER HESTERMAN’S COMMUNITY PRACTICE, Alison Fitchett-Climenhaga TIME 5. A PROCESSION IN THE MEDIEVAL BRAHMANICAL STATE: THE TIME OF “RITUAL” AND THE TIME OF RITUAL, Marko Geslani 6. ADAM LEE’S PAINTING PRACTICE, Alda Balthrop-Lewis MEDIUM 7. SERMONS, VIDEO RECORDINGS, AND ARTHUR JAFA’S AKINGDONCOMETHAS: RITUALS OF TRANSFORMATION, Jonathan Anderson 8. CHRIS BOND’S DRAWING PRACTICE: REPRODUCTIVE NEGATIONS, Killian Quigley SUBTRACTION 9. RITUAL AND SUBTRACTION, Elayne Oliphant 10. LIVE PARTICLE’S SOMATIC PRACTICE, Maurice Toscano INVENTION 11. THE JEWISH ALEINU, Molly Farneth 12. DOMINIC REDFERN’S VIDEO PRACTICE, Benjamin R. DeSpain ATTENTION 13. HOMERIC OATH-MAKING RITUALS AND THE 2014 SOTLOFF BEHEADING VIDEO: RITUALS OF MENACE, Margo Kitts 14.HARRY NANKIN’S PHOTOGRAPHY PRACTICE, Jason Goroncy LISTENING 15. THE LITURGICAL MOMENT: REVELATION AND POETIC KNOWING, Graham Ward 16. MARK NEWBOUND’S VIDEO PRACTICE: EMBODIED KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTION FROM DECOLONIAL PERSPECTIVES, Enqi Weng PART III: DISCIPLINES SOCIAL SCIENCE 17. ART PERFORMANCES AND RELIGIOUS RITUALS: HOW TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCES CAN FOSTER KNOWLEDGE, Valerie van Mulukom, Armin Geertz, Robert Clark, Miguel Farias ART HISTORY 18. THEORISING RITUAL AND ART AFTER MODERNITY, Deborah Lewer Index

Reviews

Art Making as Spiritual Practice offers a unique approach to the study of religion and the arts. By pairing theorists with practitioners, readers are able to peer into the ritualistic qualities of art making. -- S.B. Rodriguez-Plate, Professor of Religious Studies, Hamilton College, USA

Author Information

Lexi Eikelboom is a Senior Research Fellow in Religion and Theology at the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry at Australian Catholic University, Australia. David Newheiser is Associate Professor of Religion at Florida State University.

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