The Sanctity and Solace...of Bushwick

When first thinking about what to blog about, I was convinced that I would need to narrow my search down to a small perimeter around some religious establishment. But much to my (probably not that unforeseen) surprise, a trip to Bushwick was all that I needed. On a quest for something vintage and the fresh hope of a new loot of clothing with a friend at my side, I emerged from an L train stop which was, to me, in the middle of nowhere, and my eyes were graced by the sight of a church. But, in pure Brooklyn fashion, this was no ordinary church. There was no ordinary steeple, no ordinary bells or rafters, and no ordinary stained glass windows. This church was none other than a mural on a brick wall as a part of the renowned Bushwick Collective - a sort of outdoor art collection as a product of budding street artists that want to share their work unabashedly.

My first thought: “Wow, I should take a picture for the blog.” My second thought: “What text will I even relate this to?” At the time, I had no idea how I was going to use it. But as our class progressed, I found myself connecting pieces together that I didn’t think I would be able to. My mind shot to The Dharma Bums. The narrative of the book was based around exploration of the self and of one’s beliefs, as well as taking in other people’s beliefs and deciding for yourself what you choose to identify with. Not to mention, they brought their traditions and beliefs with them everywhere they went. That’s where I thought this mural came in.

Many people nowadays, at least I feel, consider themselves “lost” or “searching”. Many people are searching for some type of truth, some type of security, or maybe even clarity to cling to in the busy and confusing times of the everyday. But sometimes that clarity doesn’t come in the form of a place of worship, or a routine, or a group of friends or peers. So where there is no way, one must instead make a way. For people that can’t find a place, they make one of their own. As in The Dharma Bums, I feel as though the artist who created this mural understood the difficulty of finding a place to collectively believe in one common deity or cause, and instead created one that was for everyone to see, for everyone to appreciate, and for everyone to feel as though they could be a part of something bigger or where they could just seek to find themselves.

As for the physical aspect of this “urban church,” it has the elements of more than just one faith. For example, the ornateness of the stained glass and the structure of the building is reminiscent of the Catholic church, with its high ceilings and beautiful artistry in the form of, guess what? (Hint: they’re the stained glass windows). The eye at the top of the church represents a number of things. It can be like an all-seeing eye - and no, we’re not talking about Sauron. It can be the Hamsa, which has been represented within the Christian, Jewish, and Arabic faiths. In this way, it could be the unity of all faiths under one suppositional “roof.” Or, if we think of it in its most general terms, it could just be the picture of an omnipresent, omnipotent deity that looks over those who choose to find solace there, or oversees the goings-on.