Resonate calls for visual art submissions for new hymnal

October 3, 2017 | MennoMedia | 2020 Song Collection

News Release: October 3, 2017

Resonate calls for visual art submissions for new hymnal
New collection to feature visual worship resources

HARRISONBURG, Va.—As the Resonate team gathers material for a new hymnal, they are rolling out a call for a first-of-its-kind feature within Mennonite hymnals: a vision to include visual images that complement the musical and verbal rhythms of worship found in the collection.

“In recent decades, North American Mennonite churches have grown in our understanding of the visual aspects of worship,” said SaeJin Lee, member of Resonate’s Worship Resources subcommittee. “We hope visual art will serve as an expression of and invitation to acts of worship, and as a visual telling of God’s story.” The introduction of visual art is one way the Resonate team seeks to draw in worshipers of diverse languages and ages, who learn and express themselves in different ways.

The Resonate team is calling for visual artists to submit content to be considered for inclusion in the new collection. Artists are encouraged to explore the “Theological Inspirations and Possibilities” and to take seriously the “Aspirations for the Use of Visual Imagery” outlined in the “Call for Submissions of Visual Art” available at MennoMedia.org/Resonate. Important technical requirements are also delineated there. Artists may submit a single image or a series of pieces. Submissions are welcome between October 2017 and February 2018.

“As we receive submissions we will continue to discern whether the visual elements chosen will draw from several artists or focus on a single contributor’s work,” said general editor Bradley Kauffman. “We’re excited about how visual art can offer new ways to draw us into God’s presence.”

The 13-member volunteer committee, working under the name Resonate Team, is discerning content for the 2020 release of a suite of new worship and music materials to be published by MennoMedia in cooperation with Mennonite Church Canada and Mennonite Church USA.

For more information or to schedule an interview, contact LeAnn Hamby at 540-908-3941 or email [email protected].