Sixteen years ago, a group of students in the Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts (ITIA) began daydreaming about our online journal. Eager to bring the conversations they were having in research seminars, at reading groups, and over pints to a broader audience, Transpositions began as an exercise in fruitful, intelligent, interdisciplinary, and public discourse about theology and the arts. Today, our award-winning journal has shared nearly one thousand incisive theological essays on topics as wide ranging as beauty, the imagination, literature, film, music, narrative, the visual arts, theatre, and more.
An extension of our online journal, the Transpositions Substack exists to bring those essays and their ideas to an even wider audience, inviting others like you to join discussions on the arts and theology’s place in it, and conversely, the role of the arts in theology.
In recent decades — thanks in part to programs like ITIA all over the world — this cross-disciplinary conversation has become a legitimate discipline in its own right, one that recognizes the necessity of discussing both theology and the arts in tandem, in ways that elucidate fresh meaning about ancient truths. In this, we are keenly aware of how each illuminates something new in the other, revealing things previously unsaid or unseen. We therefore see the conversations happening in theology and the arts as essential: they help us better intuit the life of faith, the life of the world, and our place in both.
Each month, we’ll share some highlights from our corner of the world. Expect the latest essays and book reviews from our writers, as well as news and events from our international community. Sometimes, we’ll reflect on emerging themes in the work we’re currently publishing. Other times, we’ll do a deep dive into our archives and dust off some older articles of surprising relevance. You should subscribe if you’re seeking a reliable place for innovative thinking on theology and the arts, and the many fruitful avenues therein.
New here? Learn more about Transpositions at our freshly updated website. There, you can browse hundreds of articles, learn more about the work of ITIA, meet our team of editors, and stay on top of our latest call for submissions.
As mentioned, we just relaunched our website, and with it, come a whole host of new articles. Our latest theme is The World Ablaze — a head nod to the Pentecost Sunday we’ve just celebrated, the way our world is enlivened by divine presence, and the many tensions or interpretations this inspires. Highlights include:
‘The Spirit of Something’: Presence and Absence in Andrew Wyeth’s Pentecost by visual artist and PhD candidate Ellie Goings
A House for Prometheus by Dr. Charles Howell — in which an architect-turned-theologian reflects on the tension of light and darkness, of presence and absence, in famous works of architecture
Purged and Prepared: The Great-Great Grandmother’s Rosefire in George MacDonald’s Princess Stories by Sophie Burkhardt
Salvation by Fire: The Magdalene and the Madonna in Dostoevsky’s Poetics by PhD candidate Christina Eickenroht
For the remainder of spring, we’ll share one new article on this theme each week.
Want to write for us? Learn more about our submission guidelines here, and do reach out if you have any questions. Till next time, enjoy these essays, sign up for this monthly newsletter, and stay in touch.
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