This is my third essay in search for a change and the hope for the sake of the distraught and the despaired. In this effort, it is my earnest wish to make a gift out of Agapanthus, an African blue lily that became the subject of Claude Monet’s paintings. Monet was famously known as a typical artist who had never given up his undying love for his wife after years had passed since her death. He passionately loved to draw countless flowers and plants in his garden to shed light on each of them, through which he was presumed to express his ardent love toward his deceased wife. The picture above is one of Monet’s paintings exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The curator, Ann Tamkin made a special remark on the paining: “Whenever I look at Agapanthus, I feel a sensation of dynamic realism in contrast going through my mind.  I can sense flowers dancing and also the breeze enabling them to dance. The curator added a special mentioning that Mrs. Sylvia Slifka had donated the painting to the museum in memory of her late husband Joseph Slifka. I myself, while immersed in viewing the art work, I mused on how an object of art could give an impact on those who have lost all hope to survive in this barren world that is nothing more than a wasteland to them.

I had an answer: Art has potential to arouse the awareness of hope and love to those utterly despaired by means of depicting the beauty of human relations hidden in objects like flowers and plants.  Mrs. Slifka, the donor of the painting did a wonderful thing. I can imagine how immensely great was her love toward her dead husband. That painting was worth millions of dollars. Nonetheless, she gladly gave it away in fond memory of her husband. She must have realized that there was something much more valuable in life money couldn’t buy. That was love and beauty of humanness. She not only gave away a thing of priceless value to express loudly an outright rejection of the contemporary world wherein Mammon god is vigorously pursued and worshipped, but also by her charity she, in fact, comforted and uplifted those downtrodden in poverty and a fresh breeze of hope and love which have been symbolically recreated by dancing flowers through Monet’s inspirational touch.  Likewise, looking a Monet’s picture, I must have felt a strong love expressed in it.

Claude Monet made fame as a typical painter who captured the moment of impression that his objects emanated. So was the reason he was recognized as an impressionist.

In a sense, one’s depth of despair would be felt more strongly as one experiences severe lostness. Capturing a moment of impression out of an object that was only a tiny moment etched in your memory as time fleeted past would be a challenge to Monet himself. However, Monet succeeded to capture the moment with his gifted skill of touch.

My assurance is this: viewers would be strongly mystified by the Agapanthus dancing agitated by a breeze.  I also found myself mesmerized by the combined effects of a soft windblow having the flower danced and a faint beam settling down on them. I felt the image symbolizing a sort of godly transformation: despair to hope; lostness to love.

Monet began drawing pictures in an entirely different fashion at the time when most painters would draw objects as close as they looked. On the other hand, he pursued to open a new genre of impressionism contrary to the well-recognized contemporary trend of realism. Even before he put his paintings on exhibition, he had to endure hard criticism on them. He used to answer to the critics, “They all pretend to understand my works as if they are forced to do it, instead of admitting that they love them simply.” Reminiscing of Monet’s pioneering spirit in his art world, I was compelled to think about the current situation of Christianity in general of Korea. Can Korean churches be freed from the yoke of coldness and   darkness so that brightness and transparency may be attained throughout their ministries? Of course, it is also true that many churches are devoted to the commitment to fulfill the God-given missions. Obviously, it is also undeniable fact that so many churches reeking of bad odors of misbehaving and corruption. It is not so easy to find Christian entities in sound and healthy state-solidly focused on Messianic messages.  It is quite deplorable that so many of them appear to be servants of darkness, not of light. How can we expect them to feel a sweet breath of those mysterious words of love, hope, and brightness that are subtly suggested by Monet’s paintings? In conclusion, the reason I was enthralled to have seen this painting of Monet’s in the museum of New York is that I could sense the extraordinary value in a sublime dimension of life itself. In this mundane world where truth and false are not distinguished, it’d be an enormous blessing if we’d be privileged to feel the breath from the Lord while appreciating a great work of art.