Pilgrimage to the Museum: Man's Search for God Through Art and Time

by Stephen F. Auth, Evelyn Auth, Fr. Shawn Aaron L.C.

Have you ever visited a museum and found the narrations in the self-guided-tour headsets a bit tedious? Slightly too clinical, perhaps? And have you ever noticed that God is rarely mentioned in art museums these days, unless in a cold, archaeological, “scientific” way? All of that is about to change. In Pilgrimage to the Museum , author-curator Stephen Auth takes you on a provocative and colorful journey through the history of Western art, interpreted through a lens of profound Christian faith ― appropriately so since, in Auth’s view, much of Western art expresses humanity’s search for God, the Divine Artist-Creator. In this beautifully illustrated voyage, drawn largely from works on display at New York’s popular Metropolitan Museum of Art, you will experience the ups and downs of humanity’s determined quest. Leaving all the art-history jargon at the front door, Auth will transport you in his spiritual time machine from Egypt’s Old Kingdom, through Greece and Rome, to medieval Europe; from the age of the Renaissance, through the Ages of Exploration and Enlightenment; and from the rise of atheism in the late 1800s to the seeds of a spiritual rebirth in the modern era. Along the way, you will experience anew the masterpieces of many artists, from Polykleitos to Raphael, Duccio to Rembrandt, Monet to Picasso. Through the works of these great artists, you will encounter the profound truths that lead many to God and cause many others to wonder. You will discover how various themes and motifs of man’s struggle to find God occur, morph, fade, and then reoccur centuries later. As you laugh, cry, and pray your way through this illuminating voyage, you will emerge refreshed and renewed in your own journey to God― and you will never look at a work of art the same way again.

Genres: Art, Religion, Education, History

240 pages, Paperback

Published July 25, 2022

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! Love the color artwork inside- they pretty much include a gorgeous reproduction of every artwork mentioned, which you’ve be surprised at how often authors don’t include any image at all and you’re left googling every other page to see what they’re talking about (looking at you, Rembrandt in the Wind author). This is a definite reread. It walks through the ages as humans wrestle with God in artwork. Are we gods? Are gods simply men? Do the gods exist? God doesn’t exist. Then it comes full circle in a way with Dali. I do wish more scholarly work was spent with each piece and artist but I understand they also wanted to keep it short and sweet. It’s meant to the a book version of the tour that the authors give at the Met.