‘think:advent’ at Grace Church Dec. 7 and 8

SUZANNE RAMSEY
College relations staff writer

When it comes to the season of Advent, Web developer John Gauger doesn’t draw the line at nativity scenes and colorful calendars full of holiday treats.

Instead, his vision for the four-week period between Thanksgiving and Christmas includes everything from video collages with Gregorian-style chants to more traditional artwork such as painting and sculpture.

To that end, he and some friends have organized “think:advent,” an installation art exhibit which will be on display 7 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Dec. 7 and 8 at Grace Church in Lynchburg. Admission is free.

“The aim is to expose unique and creative expressions of the Advent season, which can take various shapes and forms,” Gauger said, adding that “think:advent” goes “much further than any strategic angle of the simple ‘nativity scene’ … in an effort to individually and collectively usher in the Advent season.”

Held in the church’s vacant warehouse space, the exhibit will include about a dozen artists, most from the Lynchburg area. Each will be given an 8-by-10-foot “room” constructed with partitions and a power strip. Beyond that and the Advent theme, the artists are free to express themselves however they please.

“The idea is to engage local artists-slash-creative types and give them an avenue for expression,” Gauger said. “We want to focus on the creativity that we believe God has given people. Why we’re centering it around Advent is that it points the creativity back towards God.”

So far, planned exhibits include a life-sized diorama, a multi-media light and video show, harp music, artwork by Grace Sunday school children, an oil painting and beading room, industrial sculpture and a large-scale knitting piece, among others.

Gauger’s vision extends long after the Christmas decorations are stowed in the attic. Plans for “think:easter” and “think:pentecost” are already under way. “The end goal is for this to blow ‘out of the box’ out of the box,” he said.

Grace Church is at 21129 Timberlake Road, Lynchburg. For more information, contact Gauger at Ext. 6327 or jgauger@sbc.edu .