Corpus
Corpus is a commissioned artwork for the Bible and Theology Department of Wheaton College. It is a sculptural meditation on the death and resurrection of Jesus.
For the piece, I am used an antique sculpture of the body of Jesus (a corpus) from a Crucifixion and ritualistically covered it with the contents of vacuum bags collected from the college's custodial staff. These bags contained dirt, fiber, bits of paper and other detritus as you might expect. They also contained bits of people from the community: hair and skin cells, for example, were also in the mix.
The term "corpus" is Latin for "body." It is the root for several words in English, including "corpse," corporate," and "corpuscle." All of these words have significance in my approach to this artwork.
Corpus is part of the permanent collection on display in the Bible and Theology department in the Billy Graham Center.
Links to articles written about corpus:
Campus dirt connects Wheaton College to professor's religious artwork. Chicago Tribune Local: Wheaton. March 2013
Why a Wheaton College Professor Smeared Jesus in Human Dirt. Christianity Today. March 2013
For the piece, I am used an antique sculpture of the body of Jesus (a corpus) from a Crucifixion and ritualistically covered it with the contents of vacuum bags collected from the college's custodial staff. These bags contained dirt, fiber, bits of paper and other detritus as you might expect. They also contained bits of people from the community: hair and skin cells, for example, were also in the mix.
The term "corpus" is Latin for "body." It is the root for several words in English, including "corpse," corporate," and "corpuscle." All of these words have significance in my approach to this artwork.
Corpus is part of the permanent collection on display in the Bible and Theology department in the Billy Graham Center.
Links to articles written about corpus:
Campus dirt connects Wheaton College to professor's religious artwork. Chicago Tribune Local: Wheaton. March 2013
Why a Wheaton College Professor Smeared Jesus in Human Dirt. Christianity Today. March 2013
In 2015 I was asked to give a Chapel talk to the student body at Wheaton College about Corpus.