Chris Cook, Artist, Painter. Southern Artist in Georgia

New American Totem Pole

For years past, totems were symbolic of battles, murders, family heritage, religious idols, and numerous other things. Typically found on the pacific coast of the U.S., these towers expressed a large amount of culture, creativity, and regional individuality.

That being said, Chris is an artist, and artists see things differently…

Chris saw, either in reality or in his mind, this image of a bird perched on a telephone pole, and thought of a totem pole. In a lot of ways, I totally see where he’s coming from in this. Totems were used to convey a message, to communicate, if you would. They were often an expression of battles, conflicts, family heritage, and religious identity – much of that can be conveyed today through technology and modern communication. In a lot of ways, the “pole” presence of totems has been achieved and spread throughout the entire country with the advent of telephone poles.

The message, however, has shifted away from that of individuality and regional expression and more towards centralization of information and a feeling of connectedness amongst the country’s people. What was once such a vibrant and unique expression has been reduced down to a mainstream symbol of “progress”.

Furthermore, these days, the need for overhead “phone lines” and poles is going the way of the dodo bird as cloud technology and digital signals continue to replace hard wired communication. It just goes to show how times can shift, and the way we see things one day can be completely different on the next. Kudos to Chris for seeing this image, and capturing the thoughts down. Years from now, corded phones and wired communication will be a thing of the past, much like many of the people who once carved the grand totems out west.

Chris Cook is a premier southern artist and owner of Madison Studios, a web design, maintenance, and e-commerce and marketing company. For his artist biography, contact information, or to view more of his work, click HERE.

Carter

Carter is Chris’ son. He’s an avid soccer player, and an active member of the youth group at the local Methodist Church here in Madison.

Chris used acrylic paint on canvas to capture a glimpse of Carter for the family collection. I think that he did a great job of getting the essence of Carter’s personality in this portrait. I have greatly enjoyed getting to know Carter over the last 2.5 years that I have been back in town. One of the first things that anyone who spends more than a few minutes with him will begin to notice is his smile and his laughter. Simply put, Carter is a happy guy, and one that would do anything to help anyone.

I can think of no better way to have captured this memory of Carter than to have him in full smile, teeth showing and all! That’s the great thing about art – its all about capturing one moment, one memory, one point in time, one emotion. So many of Chris’ paintings do this so well, colors, expressions, styles, and placements draw the view into the painting and into that moment in time. This truth holds particular strength in a lot of Chris’ spiritual paintings like the one of the healed blind man.

Art is all about capturing a moment. Moments in time are fleeting, and it’s important that we find a way to make them last and impact our lives fully, before they are gone forever. Do you have a favorite moment in time or history that has been captured in a work of art?

Crab Apple Tree

The south is full of interesting people, many of whom have amazing stories to tell. Farmers, dairymen, mechanics, doctors, teachers, veterans, and the like are all over little towns here in the south. One such man is affectionately known as “Mr. Charlie” to Chris. Chris spent some time shadowing and talking with Mr. Charlie, listening to stories, and snapping pictures as he walked and worked around his property. It was an afternoon full of memories and moments that I am sure Chris remembers even today.

I like the way that Chris captured this moment. The greens of the pasture and the leaves of the tree, and the roundness of the apples remind me of time spent on some family property, walking fence lines and throwing crab apples at my brother. The fruit of the tree was always temperamental, almost never “just right”; most often, a taste would result in a puckered face and an exclamation of displeasure.

The folds of Mr. Charlie’s bag and clothing almost seem to mirror the folds and wrinkles in his arms and face. Both are weathered and worn by time, but still work well, and serve a great purpose. From this angle, Mr. Charlie could remind just about anyone around these parts of an uncle, a grandfather, a neighbor, or a friend.

People from Mr. Charlie’s generation are a different breed altogether. They knew more about living off of the land, living a frugal life, and enjoying moments for what they are than any generation after probably ever will. They came from a much simpler time. Chris did a great job of capturing the essence of what Mr. Charlie, and the people like him stand for; a little worn and somewhat broken down, but still full of life, energy, and wisdom that extend far beyond their time. The amount of life held within the years of men and women like Mr. Charlie is something for all of us to remember, revere, and admire.

What are the memories that this painting evokes for you?

Father Francis

Father Francis Xavier Kavanagh was one of the founding members of the Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Monastery in Conyers, GA. He, along with 19 others, formed the Trappist Monastery in 1944. Father Francis is widely remembered by most of the students and visitors who came to the grounds for his role as guest master. He was the face and voice of the monastery for many of the guest who came in seeking information and spiritual counsel.

Chris grew up in the Conyers area. He visited the grounds often as both a “tourist” and as an artist seeking inspiration. The beautiful southern landscape lends a lot of natural beauty to the grandeur of the abbey grounds.

I like the style of this painting. Chris jests that I’m “digging deep” for this painting because it’s from so long ago. I think that the geometric lines and shapes that compose the face, juxtaposed against the rounded crown of the Father’s head are captivating.

There is a mysterious, almost secretive shroud around the monastic lifestyle. I’ve often pondered about the type of faith that it would take to live a life devoted to monastic practices like prayer, service, solitude, silence, and the Trappist skills like baking bread and making wine, beer, and cheeses. The devotion that these men have to their crafts and to their faith is unparalleled. Chris does a beautiful job of capturing a glimpse of the father, incorporated into an artistically blended and beautiful expression.

My question is this – What are your experiences with Monks, Nuns, and Monasteries? Have you visited the grounds out in Conyers? Ever enjoyed a food or product made by the hands of one of these skilled craftsmen?

Nativity

With the first Sunday of Advent behind us, and the supply of leftover turkey and dressing dwindling down, the coming of Christmas is becoming more and more real as the days go by. For those of you who aren’t keeping count, Christmas Eve is 3 weeks from today! This is the perfect time of the year to begin to reflect, recall, and remember all that took place in the months before. The Calendar year is drawing to a close, and the Christian year is just beginning. Whether we like it or not, Christmas is coming; December 25th will come just like it always has. The time is now for us to begin to prepare…

Prepare our minds – try to clear our heads of the stress and chaos of bouncing from one family event to the next. To cope with the increased traffic, larger crowds at stores, psyching ourselves up for “that” family member and their comments and conversations around the table.

Prepare our homes – Cleaning, hanging lights, putting red bows and greenery on anything that will stand still long enough, baking sweets and goodies to be prepared for those drop in guests, finishing up that “honey do” list before everyone comes over for the big dinner.

Prepare our hearts – Advent is literally defined as “the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event”. As Christians, it is a time set aside for us to prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ into the world. We focus on Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love….all of which Christ brought into the world when he was born in that manger.

Nativity scenes are rampant in homes, businesses, and town squares this time of year. Depictions of cattle, sheep, wise men, the manger and barn, Joseph, Mary, and the baby in the manger. It is a familiar scene for most of us, but it serves as a great reminder for us of the humble entrance that our Savior made into this world some 2000 years ago.

Chris’ wife Robyn asked him to paint a nativity scene for their home last year. This painting was the result that came. I like the way that he shows the stable distant and separated from the rest of the town. It reinforces that there was no real room for the family as they came into the busy town of Bethlehem. No real preparation or “getting ready” for them at all. It’s a great reminder of the gift that God gave us, even when the world hadn’t prepared a place for her King.

My hope is that this, and every year, each of us will be able to slow down, reflect on the blessings, and prepare a place in our hearts for the coming of Jesus into our lives, just as he came into that Bethlehem stall years ago. May we seek him out, like the wise men did, worship him, as the shepherds came and did, and hold him close to our hearts, much like I am sure the Virgin Mary did on that first night.

Peter Leaves the Boat

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

29 “Come,” he said.

In the middle of the storm, he himself standing on the waves, Jesus looks to the disciples as they huddled in the middle of the boat in fear. He encourages them not to be afraid because it is him. Peter, probably shivering from fear and soaked to the bone, calls out to his Rabbi, “if it is you, let me walk out on the waves to you”. In the middle of the chaos of the storm, he wanted so badly to be near Jesus, that his first thought was “let me walk out to you on the waves in the middle of this storm”. He takes the steps out onto the water, and for a moment in faith and time, a mortal man is walking on water with Jesus.

This painting captures that first moment out of the boat for Peter. The waves, chaotic and wild, splashing over the side of the boat, are somehow supporting him as he ventures out towards Jesus. The boat, representative of the safety and security of what Peter knew and was comfortable with, lies in the background. Peter still has one hand on the boat, taking advantage of that last moment of reassurance as he tests the waters and takes his first steps; his eyes are fixed on his Lord.

I love the way that Chris has pictured Peter in this painting. He is technically out of the boat, but still clinging for that brief moment to what he knew. So often, in the midst of life’s storms, we can be like Peter. We fix our eyes on Jesus, hear his voice bid us to come to him, take the step out onto the crashing waves, and leave that one hand holding onto the boat, just in case. We cling to what we think we know as safe and secure because we refuse to take a few steps in faith towards the ultimate source of all peace and comfort. We let the chaos and spray of the storm keep us too close to the boat.

The command the Jesus gave was simple, “don’t be afraid” and “come”. That’s all Jesus asks of us. No matter how tough life can be, how hard the wind howls, and how high the waves crash. He simply says for us not to fear because he’s there. Once we’ve relinquished the fear, we can act with boldness and authority. We, like Peter, can step out into life’s storms and walk towards our Lord and Savior, knowing that he is there with us in the middle of all of the wind, rain, and noise.

May we all have the courage to seek God’s presence and hear his voice in the midst of life’s struggles, like Peter did.

…But Now, I see…

He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”

So often, as I contribute to this blog, I get caught up in the subject matter and forget that it’s an artist’s blog. Chris has such a tremendous gift for capturing moments in time on his canvasses that it becomes easy to be absorbed into the subject matter, and nearly forget the skill and beauty of the process that went into the creation of the painting. The beautiful southern landscapes, many of which were either drawn from memory or a quick sketch that Chris made during his travels, evoke thoughts of the simplicity and beauty that surround the pastures, barns, and country roads that he illustrates. The expressions and feeling that are captured in many of his spiritual paintings can nearly transform the viewer back in time to sights, sounds, and emotions of the moment in history.

From a technical standpoint – Chris tells me that this painting was done with acrylic paint, mostly with a palate knife. This allowed him to achieve the texture of this painting that I find fascinating. It is based on a group of 1950’s California artists, including Elmer Bischoff, whose style Chris saw in one of his many art history books. Immediately when he saw this style of painting, he knew the subject matter that he wanted to use for his creation with that style. As an artist, Chris tries to “Re-use, Recycle, and Re-purpose” themes, styles, and techniques of artwork in a way different from the original creation. Much like his painting of Judas Kissing Jesus, where he blended two different Picasso paintings’ styles into a beautiful expression of Jesus’ betrayal. Chris’ love for art and the creative process lend themselves very well to inspire and motivate him to create ever evolving beautiful portfolio of work.

From a content standpoint – This painting, if you know the story from John 9, screams so much! Like they often did, the religious leaders had set out to investigate Jesus’ healing of a blind man near the pool of Siloam. They wanted to know how and why “this man” had restored sight to the blind man on the Sabbath. They questioned the intentions that Jesus had in healing the man, along with the power with which he did it. They called him a sinner for carrying out a healing act on a holy day of rest. I love the man’s response as they’re grilling him.

The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes.

31We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will.

32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”

The once blind man only knew one thing about Jesus; once he’d had an encounter with him, he was never the same. His eyes were opened, and he began to see. Nothing else mattered in that moment but the healing and enlightenment that came from Jesus’ touch. The Pharisees were too caught up in the why and the how to experience the true gift of the presence of Jesus in that moment.

I think we could all stand to learn a thing or two from the man whose sight had been restored – once you’ve experienced Jesus’ healing, nothing else really matters. All we need to know is that it happened!

May we choose not to be like the religious leaders, not to get caught up in all of the details and specifics of how, when, where, and why Jesus can come and do his healing work, and simply curl up at his feet and let him do the healing that he came into this world to do!

Southern Landscape: Cool Shade

When you visit Chris’ home page, the tag across the top reads ” A Georgia Artist. American Painter from the South.” I think this picture helps to capture a bit of the Southern heritage that permeates a lot of his work, particularly his landscapes.

When I look at this painting, I could easily imagine that it is a snapshot of any of the countless cow pastures that dot the surrounding counties. The long wooden fence is not unlike many of the ones that we have all seen rolling down the country roads of this area.

After reading the title, “Cool Shade”, the painting begins to take on a whole new perspective. Anyone who has lived in the south through the “dog days” of summer knows the value of a good patch of shade. It seems that every life form tries to do all that they can to find a respite from the onslaught of heat and sun that accompany those days. There is nothing quite like a dip in a swimming hole, or a nap under a shade tree if you can find it in the heat of the day. Even the cows, like the ones shown in this painting do what they can to find relief.

Southern summers are long and hot, but the real joy that comes in finding a way to beat the heat. Popsicles, snow cones, ceiling fans, water sprinklers, swimming holes and shade trees typically feed into some of the best and most lasting memories of summer. So my question for you is this – How do you beat the heat in the summer months? Can you identify with our bovine friends pictured here?

Jesus’ Baptism:

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said,

‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”

The inspiration for this painting is the event that, according to scriptures, marked the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry on earth. John the Baptist, a wild eyed, Birkenstock wearing, locust eating prophet had been calling out to the Jews for some time to “prepare the way of The Lord”, and “repent for the time is near”. He warned them to get their lives in order so that they would be ready for the Messiah’s appearance.

One day, around 30 years after the word became flesh, Jesus walks out to meet John at the River Jordan to be baptized. Immediately upon seeing Jesus, John proclaims that He is indeed the Messiah, the sacrificial lamb who would take away the sins of the world. Here before him was the one he had been sent to prepare the world to receive. Everything that he’d done up until this point had lead up to this moment. Jesus, God in flesh, had come to be baptized by a man.

John tells us that in that moment, he saw the Spirit fall on Jesus like a dove. There was a very visible change in Jesus’ countenance after this moment. He was fueled up and ready to begin his ministry here on earth. He immediately began recruiting and ministering to those around him that he would use to help change the world.

I find comfort in knowing that my God spent time here on this earth with humanity; the divine put on flesh and bone to be among us, so that we might know him more.

Chris does a great job of capturing this moment in his painting. You can see Jesus, robed in white to reinforce his purity and “lamb like” qualities. I love that the perspective of the shot isn’t from either John’s or Jesus’ perspective, but rather from the point of view of one who would be sitting on the banks of the river, witnessing our Lord and Savior being baptized, perhaps just as they had been moments before. He depicts John out in the water, expectantly waiting for his messiah to come and be baptized; I can almost feel how nervously excited John must have been in that moment.

There is a large original version of this painting on the wall in the Wesley Building at the First UMC here in Madison. It is positioned so that it is one of the focal points upon entering through the main doors of the building.

Southern Artist: Chris and Mike

Chris Cook is a dear friend of mine, a member of the congregation at my church, and the father of two young boys who are active and involved in the children’s and youth ministry where I serve on staff. In addition to all of that, he is also my employer; part of my job is to write blog posts about his works of art in an effort to increase awareness of his paintings, and develop a following within the art community. I say all of this to tell you that there are certain paintings that are easier than others to write about than others;

Many of them are of a spiritual nature, which makes it easy for a youth pastor to find content.

Some of them are abstract, which stretches this simple minded Georgia boy a little bit to “understand” and “explain” them,

A lot of them blend styles and themes from popular artists like da Vinci and Picasso, forcing me to dig deep down to the “fine art” exposure that I’ve had in the past, and to remember what my teachers taught us about back in grade school.

And then, there are paintings like this, where Chris has captured a very personal moment with him and his older brother Mike. How do I even begin to write about these two boys, of which I know very little? What can I say about this piece of art that my boss made to express his bond with his brother as they grew up in the Conyers area? What do begin to say about his expression of colors, the blending of mediums, and styles? And, more importantly, how about the overalls that chris has on!? 😉

The truth is, I really do like this painting.

Artistically – Chris sketched this out based on an old photograph that he had of him and Mike taken some years back. He’s told me that he doesn’t do a lot of pencil sketches, so this one must be important. The article in the paper was glued on, in an effort to re-establish the “Georgian” childhood. The colors were all sort of free formed around the sketch and paper article. Overall, I think it works really well to come together into an impressive work of art.

Personally – The two boys could just as easily be my brother Luke and me, or any other little boys growing up in rural Georgia. Chris shared that “Mike was probably about to load me into a wagon and send me down the street to get rid of me”, a thought that I can sympathize with as a little brother. I can recall many “rainy nights in Georgia” full of good sleep. The picture is fun to look at, because of the successful blending of colors and styles. I really like this work of art.

Chris Cook Artist

Kratos

Footprint

Kara

Chris Evans

Blind, Not Blind, Judged, Not Judged.

Untitled – Man Reaching

Woman at the Well

Untitled on Purpose