Avantgarde Art and Radical Material Theology

A Manifesto

Petra Carlsson Redell author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd

Published:5th Oct '20

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Avantgarde Art and Radical Material Theology cover

Exploring the intersections of art and theology, Avantgarde Art and Radical Material Theology highlights Liubov Popova's contributions to contemporary thought.

This book introduces a pioneering thinker to the realm of theology: Russian avant-garde artist Liubov Popova (1889-1924). Recognized for her exceptional artistic and intellectual contributions, Popova's ideas have largely been overlooked in discussions about 20th-century thinkers. By bringing her work to the forefront, Avantgarde Art and Radical Material Theology seeks to illuminate the connections between her innovative ideas and those of prominent figures in the field.

Theological discourse has often concentrated on existential meaning, frequently neglecting the implications for enhancing our physical lives. In dialogue with the materialist art and thought of the 20th century, this book proposes a radical theology that directly addresses contemporary political and ecological challenges. By intertwining Popova's art with the philosophies of thinkers such as Walter Benjamin, Donna Haraway, Gilles Deleuze, and Paul Tillich, Avantgarde Art and Radical Material Theology explores a rich tapestry of ecotheological and theopolitical perspectives.

Ultimately, this work serves as a call for theological activism, advocating for the inclusion of diverse voices in discussions surrounding art, spirituality, and environmental stewardship. It will resonate with scholars in Theology, Religion and the Arts, and the Philosophy of Religion, offering fresh insights and a manifesto for radical theology in our current context.

"Petra Carlsson Redell is unique among radical theologians. Instead of talking about creativity and imagination, she does theology that is actually creative and imaginative. Moreover, her theological discourse addresses the visual arts, also extremely rare among radical theologians. But Carlsson Redell goes even further, her work not only addresses the visual arts, but is formed by and through her engagement Russian Constructivism—one of the more radical aesthetic and political practices of the early twentieth-century avantgarde—and the paintings and writings of Liubov Popova (1889–1924) in particular. Carlsson Redell does theology, performs and improvises a theology that resembles Popova’s paintings and writings, shapes of powerful color that form a loosely yet taught assemblage composed of elements—an actual, material “thing” that works in the world—that contributes to its complexity and mystery, and in the process, perhaps even changes it."

Daniel A. Siedell, Ph.D. art historian, educator, and curator, New York City

"Petra Carlsson Redell's new book is an illustration of what can happen when new voices and fresh perspectives are introduced into established traditions of thought. By inserting Liubov Popova, one of the most important women artists of the Russian avant-garde, into the tradition of radical theology, Carlsson Redell reframes theological ideas in ways which allow her to engage directly with current political and ecological issues. Popova helps the author rethink the spiritual dimension of matter and to address the environmental crisis, a problem which, as far as it hinges on human existence, is ultimately theological in nature. The book is both an original contribution to the field of theology through the arts and to a radical theology, which confronts boldly problems of modernity."

Clemena Antonova, author of Visual Thought in Russian Religious Philosophy (Routledge, 2020), and Research Director of the Eurasia in Global Dialogue Programme, Institute for Human Sciences, Vienna

ISBN: 9780367188719

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 453g

104 pages