I had high hopes last year walking my family through one of my favorite places, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. In no way would I qualify as an art expert. But I enjoy the challenge of learning. I love being stretched to grow in front of world-class experts in beauty. Unfortunately, I think I set my hopes too high for three kids under 10, and the visit ended in my visible frustration as we headed to Times Square and Hershey’s Chocolate World, which was a huge hit.
Maybe one day I’ll get to visit The Met with Russ Ramsey. He’s the author of the new book Van Gogh Has a Broken Heart: What Art Teaches Us About the Wonder and Struggle of Being Alive, published by Zondervan Reflective. I never get tired of him telling the stories behind great art and artists. In this book, he writes, “Art shows us back to ourselves, and the best art doesn’t flinch or look away. Rather, it acknowledges the complexity of struggles like poverty, weariness, and grief while defiantly holding forth beauty—reminding us that beauty is both scarce and everywhere we look.”
He goes on to say, “The truth is that we were made to exist in the presence of glory.”
Hear more from Russ on this episode of Gospelbound about the wonder and struggle of being alive.
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