Story by Jim Bishop
A campus pastor who is also an artist will speak on “stewards of creation” and discuss his work at an art exhibit opening at Eastern Mennonite University.
Ted Lyddon Hatten, director of the Wesley Foundation at Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa, will give a chapel talk on Christians’ responsibility for caring for creation at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Martin Chapel of the seminary building. An informal discussion period with coffee will follow his presentation.
He will be present for the opening reception 8-9:30 p.m. Thursday of his work on environmental stewardship themes in the third floor art gallery of EMU’s Hartzler Library.
Hatten, who became director of the Wesley Foundation at Drake in July 2007, is the conference artist for the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He has 17 years of pastoral ministry experience in a variety of settings.
In addition to campus ministry, Hatten operates an art studio in Des Moines. His liturgical design work can be seen in congregations throughout Iowa. He is responsible for large-scale installations at the Annual Conference Session of the United Methodist Church and consults with churches on matters of art and faith.
An untitled installation he will erect on EMU’s campus will extend from Martin Chapel of the seminary building to the Hartzler Library art gallery and various points in between. It will involve images, the spoken word, sand and a communion wafer with themes of exile, environmental degradation and hope.
Hatten earned a BA degree in art history from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and an MA in divinity from Drew University Theological School. He lives in Indianola, Iowa, with his wife Lana and their sons Jonah, Asa and Sam.
Hatten’s campus visit is co-sponsored by the visual arts and communication department and campus ministries at EMU.The exhibit will be open for viewing during regular library hours daily free of charge through Feb. 29.
For more information, call 540.432.4168 or 540.432.4196.
Jim Bishop is a regular contributor to The Augusta Free Press.
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