Pages of faith: Exhibit's images meant to inspire

The artwork in the "St. John's Bible" isn't intended to illustrate the accompanying text but to "ignite your spiritual imagination."

So says Tim Ternes, the director of the seven-volume, handwritten and hand-illustrated work that will total more than 1,150 pages when completed.

People talk of not simply viewing but experiencing the "St. John's Bible," Ternes says.

Fargo-Moorhead residents can share in that experience now through Dec. 27 as the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County (HCSCC) at the Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead displays 25 fine-art prints from the massive work. The exhibit includes 90-percent-scale prints from five of the Bible's volumes.

"Oh, it's a beautiful exhibit," HCSCC Executive Director Maureen Kelly Jonason says. "The images are ... inspiring for people of all faiths, I would say."

The "St. John's Bible" project is a commissioned endeavor to produce a hand-written and illustrated vision of the Bible through the ancient techniques of calligraphy and artistic illumination.

The massive and time-intensive undertaking was commissioned by St. John's University in Collegeville, Minn., more than a decade ago and is expected to be completed next summer. The project was created in close collaboration with individuals from St. John's and is sponsored by the Benedictine order of St. John's Abbey, which is also in Collegeville.

Renowned English calligrapher Donald Jackson has led - and is part of - the team of 17 artists and scribes given the honor of crafting the Bible.

Ground gemstones and 24-karat gold are incorporated into the work. Scribes used turkey, swan and goose feathers to write on the sheets of velum, or calf skin, that form the pages of the Bible. The volumes comprising the project measure almost 3 feet wide when opened.

The Bible is "truly awe-inspiring," says Anne Kaese, a Fargo calligrapher and calligraphy teacher who is giving talks about the exhibit at the Hjemkomst Center and in the community.

"The value of hand­writing a Bible is that the earnestness of the task, I think, impresses all of us," Kaese says. She says the project has "weight" and "heft."

Technology passes, she explains. Contemporary culture is now unimpressed with the relatively recent technology of the cell phone.

"But you take a human endeavor, and over time, it remains strong and powerful," says Kaese, a native of South Africa.

There is also an impressive historic aspect to this endeavor as, according to Kaese, this is the first completely handwritten Bible to be created in more than five centuries.

Like Ternes, Kaese believes the works of art in the "St. John's Bible" are more than simple illustrations. She sees them as multi-layered creations that seek to draw the viewer into experience and reflection.

"An illumination should talk to your heart, not just your eye," she says.

And while there is iconic imagery in this Bible, much of the art is strikingly contemporary.

"It really serves to bring the Scriptures into the contemporary world," Ternes says. "This puts the Bible into the visual vernacular of our culture.

"We are a visual society. Our young people learn very visually. And this allows that beautiful blending of word and image," Ternes says.

Kaese says that the monks at St. John's University have provided the "possibility for people to take a fresh look at their faith" through the eyes of this creation.

And if the exhibit whets residents' appetites, the remedy is just a daytrip away. Collegeville, where the original volumes are housed, is about two-and-a-half hours from Fargo-Moorhead.

A reception for the "St. John's Bible" exhibit is set for 1-3 p.m. today at the Hjemkomst Center, with a guided tour beginning at 1:30 p.m.

"We are very excited," Jonason says of the exhibit. "And we feel a real buzz in the air."

If you go

• What: Exhibit of prints from the "St. John's Bible"
• When: Through Dec. 27
• Where: Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County at the Hjemkomst Center
• Info: An opening reception for the "St. John's Bible" prints exhibit is from 1-3 today. Call (218) 299-5511 for more information.
• Related events: There are several presentations and other events associated with the "St. John's Bible" exhibit including:
• 7-9 p.m. Tuesday, First United Congregational Church, Moorhead, technical "behind the scenes" lecture presented by Anne Kaese, hosted by the Red River Watercolor Society; open to the public.
• 1-3 p.m. Nov. 6, Hjemkomst Center, calligraphy and illumination demonstration.
• 6-7 p.m. Dec. 8, First United Methodist Church, Fargo, presentation by Anne Kaese on the panels, process and philosophy of the "St. John's Bible" project.

Readers can reach Forum reporter Shane Mercer at (701) 451-5734