“Heart for Wood”: Seminary receives collection of wooden book eco-artwork
Published: February 21, 2024
By Annette Brill Bergstresser
ELKHART, Indiana (Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) 鈥� A collection of 30 books carved out of discarded wood by artist Christine Langerhorst of Utrecht, Netherlands, has found a home in the Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (bg真人) Library in Elkhart, Indiana.
The seminary community will celebrate the gift of the 鈥淗art voor Hout | Heart for Wood鈥� collection on Thursday, March 14, on the bg真人 campus at 3003 Benham Avenue, Elkhart. Visitors can view the books on display in the library from 9 to 11 a.m. From 9:45 to 10:15 a.m., a reception will be held in the bg真人 Lounge. The reception is free and open to the public; advance registration is required as space is limited (see ambs.edu/langerhorst).
The donors of the collection are Daniel and Margaret Schipani. Daniel Schipani, DrPsy, PhD, is bg真人 Professor Emeritus of Pastoral Care and Counseling and Doctor of Ministry Faculty of Record. He is a close friend of Langerhorst.
Schipani first learned to know Langerhorst in 1992 while serving as a visiting professor at the Vrije Universiteit (Free University) Amsterdam, Netherlands. Following worship on Sundays, he would browse the displays in the art market on the Spui Square. He said Langerhorst鈥檚 artwork caught his attention 鈥� in particular the books she had carved from discarded wood. They began conversations, and before Schipani returned to the United States, he purchased three of her books.
During later trips to the Netherlands, Schipani reconnected with Langerhorst and got to see her at work in her workshop on one of the canals in Utrecht. He described seeing thousands of pieces of wood there, waiting to be 鈥渂rought to new life鈥� in her care. Over the years, he added books to his collection, which is now one of the largest of her artwork.
While the books in bg真人鈥檚 collection represent only a small sample of the hundreds of books that Langerhorst has created over several decades, Schipani sees them as representing a sort of 鈥渒aleidoscope鈥� of her work.
鈥淭hose who visit the library will be able to appreciate the ways in which seemingly insignificant chunks of wood from diverse kinds of trees eventually became beautiful rustic books,鈥� he said. 鈥淐hristine says that her books somehow tell the stories of the trees they come from, and her work 鈥榮aves鈥� those stories in beautiful book-forms.鈥�
In addition to their appreciation for art, Schipani and Langerhorst 鈥� who is also a psychotherapist 鈥� found common ground and inspiration in their shared vocation as counselors and spiritual healers. They identified connections between the process of creating artwork and the processes of counseling, spiritual formation and education 鈥� with shared elements being contemplation, engagement, formgiving, emergence and release.
Karl Stutzman, MLS, Director of Library Services at bg真人, sees the seminary library as a fitting home for Schipani鈥檚 collection. Built in 2007, it was the first theological library in North America to be LEED-certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) by the U.S. Green Building Council.
鈥淚鈥檓 excited about the ways this public display of Langerhorst鈥檚 art intersects with the vision of our library to be a sustainable study center in support of the broader bg真人 mission,鈥� he said.
Stutzman named the library鈥檚 connection to the 鈥渃ontemplation鈥� stage of the transformative creative process described by Schipani and Langerhorst.
鈥淎bove all, our library is a space for contemplative, embodied study,鈥� he reflected. 鈥淭his 鈥榚co-art鈥� fits in perfectly alongside the beautiful locally milled cherry woodwork of our library. The wooden books’ colors, grain patterns and shapes all enhance this ecologically designed space.鈥�
The books in bg真人鈥檚 collection will be available for view before and after the March 14 reception. Going forward, they鈥檒l be featured on a rotating basis in a library display case since the collection is too large to be shown in its entirety.
Stutzman noted that an online exhibit of the collection is also being developed. It will be hosted by the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI), a consortium to which the bg真人 Library belongs.
To register for the reception, see ambs.edu/langerhorst.
Located in Elkhart, Indiana, on ancestral land of the Potawatomi and Miami peoples, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary is a learning community with an Anabaptist vision, offering theological education for learners both on campus and at a distance as well as a wide array of lifelong learning programs 鈥� all with the goal of educating followers of Jesus Christ to be leaders for God鈥檚 reconciling mission in the world. ambs.edu
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