Inspiring Craftsmanship from the Master Creator

I visited "The Art Of Cartier" Exhibition with a friend last Friday. (Cartier is the renowned French jeweler whose creations transcend jewellery into intricate pieces of art.) We happened to walk in after I remembered Hann reminding me to check out the Shigeru Ban pavilion and the new NSM extension designed by Mok Wei Wei opposite it at the re-opened National Museum of Singapore. I must say, the exhibition was literally breath-taking. For one, it is absolutely free. Yup, you don't have to pay anything to get in! Just be sure not to take anything out. All that glitter is not gold, but diamonds. And judging by the amount of diamonds in there, I bet there are invisible snipers aimed at everyone of us who go in (thought I saw a few red dots flying around).

Anyway, I wanted to say something about craftsmanship. What struck me about the exhibition was firstly the way the place was set up. Using ordinary bricks, each piece was stacked up in a diagonal interlocking manner that created an intricate backdrop for the jewels to be exhibited. The beauty of that was it was so intricately laid out, you kind of have the feeling that each brick was exquisitely placed there and belonged there. The same and more could be said about each jewellery. The fine attention to detail and the brilliantly creative ways the diamonds were laid out to form pieces of art to beholdm, spoke of a craftmanship that was par excellence.

I knew this could only come with a commitment of passion and dedication to years of practice and refinement. I was inspired. I thought about what kind of architect I wanted to be and I hope I can be one that reflects such skill and craftsmanship. Recently, I came across a few youtube performances of artistes whom I consider as craftsman of their own art. They are brilliant performers who constantly redefine creativity. Here they are.







A pity most of these songs tend to talk about wanting to have sex. Now, if there was an artiste who had such craftsmanship as these and wrote songs with healthier lyrics that still blew your mind, but in a less "I'm sexy you are sexy, let's get it on" way and a more "You are special, life's an adventure, live it to your fullest" kind of way, wouldn't that be just powerful?

As a Chrisitan, I am inspired to hone the craft and giftings that God has given me so that I can point more people to Him. The Bible tells us that all good gifts come from God. Isn't it only responsible then, that we make sure we live out these talents with a level of craftsmanship that reflects the genius of our master creator? Start today.