Katelyn Arquette - Idols Series

“Music is a moral law. It gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, and life to everything. It is the essence of order, and leads to all that is good, just and beautiful, of which it is the invisible, but nevertheless dazzling, passionate, and eternal form.” -Plato

Prince

David Bowie

Freddie Mercury

Michael Jackson

Idolatry can be defined as the worship of something without meaning, which lends itself to the notion that entertainment is simply a distraction from reality. However, it seems that perhaps music is more than simply empty, meaningless entertainment. Plato looks at the universe and sees a symphony of harmony. He posits that music should penetrate the soul, but must not push it towards vice- “More than anything else, rhythm and harmony find their way into the inmost soul and take strongest hold upon it.” He insists that no music should be accepted or rejected simply because it is pleasing. Indeed, the child of the marriage of ideas and sound is music. The musings of Plato support this by proposing that music is allied to the intricacies of man’s nature as well as the intricacies of the nature of reality and the universe

This is addressed in the “Idols” painting series of studies by incorporating the identities and respective impacts of modern popular musical artists on our culture while playing off traditional theological art as it explores the link between idolatry, meaning, music, and how society has shifted the way in which we have attempted (or not attempted) to find higher meaning in reality. I explore this with the implementation of sacred geometry- emblematic of an intelligible reality and self-evident truth, arguing for faith with clarity of understanding. Strategic placement of gold leaf is representative of a glimpse of divine truth and a nod to traditional symbolic representation of the divine in art, while the aforementioned geometric shapes and symbols attribute specific ideas and meaning to each particular musical artist.

Prince

The Sri Yantra is said to contain the path to enlightenment. The symbol's five upright triangles represent male energy while its five downward triangles represent the feminine divine. Together they represent the perfect union of male and female. The sacred geometry of the Sri Yantra is considered so profound that meditating upon it is said to inspire divine wisdom.

David Bowie

The iconic labyrinth of Chartres Cathedral is symbolic of our journey towards the pursuit of truth, wisdom, enlightenment, and the realization of what is wonderful.

The labyrinth is composed of a number of symbols which strike the most profound chords of our subconscious—the circle, the cross and the spiral. Through these crucial forms the labyrinth is linked to man's inner world, to the collective unconscious, and to the sacred motifs of most cultures.

Freddie Mercury

The iconography of the round halo is typically regarded as a representation of divine nature. The halo is a symbol of the "light of God" shining forth through the icon and is similarly described as a window into the heavens.

Michael Jackson

The Golden Ratio, from a theological and artistic viewpoint, represents mathematical perfection of aesthetics, which is the epitome of the Divine.