“Art is the expression of that wonderful capacity within man whereby he can do what otherwise only God can do, that is, create,”1 declared theologian Abraham Kuyper. Creation is an expression and a capacity instilled within human beings; we can express what we think, feel or imagine through the act of creation. It can be an empowering feeling as we possess the capacity to build and design an object or, through our imagination, generate an idea that can turn into a story or one that builds upon other intellectual foundations. Creation entails skill and imagination.
The Blanton Museum’s exhibition “Run the Code ” is a current exhibition that shows how “contemporary artists harness algorithms and generative AI models to create powerful, thought-provoking works that explore nature, art history, internet culture, and human behavior.” Interestingly, code and data serve as artistic materials rather than simply tech tools, and digital artists redirect algorithms to creative ends. Although the artworks are still deeply human, the exhibition asks, ‘what does it mean to create art in a world shaped by data’? For Christians, I think it is important to keep in mind who the ultimate creator is, the purpose of art itself, and where the creative talent comes from. Everything else is secondary.
Only God can truly create
The world stage has been set. God created the world and universe out of nothing: ex nihilo. In Genesis 1-2, God creates the earth and its living resources, and then he creates his greatest creation: human beings. God equips humans with traits shared by the Trinity: “Let us create man in our image.” One of these traits is the ability to create. However, creation not in the sense of making something out of nothing; rather, using preexisting materials and data (just like AI uses preexisting data it has been fed and further generates as seen in the Run the Code exhibit). There is no original creation happening: “No human artist can create substance and splendor in reality; only God can do that. Even though art is actually a life expression that shows that people created in God’s image can create like God…it always remains a creating in a creaturely manner, creating out of imagination, creating for appearance to the eye, creating the representation of the thing rather than the thing itself.” 2 We cannot get out of this process; we live and breathe within this format which God established. In the same manner, AI processes and generates information that already exists which humans have put out there in the world. It may seemingly appear “new” but it still functions within its own human created limitations–it’s not creating new worlds with raw materials.
Art is meant to move us upward
Digital artists are using AI to come up with aesthetic creations that push the human boundaries. While it may sound exciting, it is important to consider the purpose of such creations. Are they merely exploratory or do they have an agenda in mind? For Kuyper, art is not just something we do for its sake, but rather art is supposed to move us upward: “The motive of art comes to us not from what exists, but from the notion that there is something higher, something nobler, something richer.” When we look at a great work of art, we become aware of its majestic beauty and that sensation transports us to a higher realm. For example, altarpieces during the Middle Ages served to direct the church congregation upward, beyond the physical, present world to a heavenly and majestic one. Kuyper further writes that, “we who live with Scripture call that higher beauty the beauty of glory that will one day appear. For us, all art and all beauty that proceed from nature constitute a prophecy and foreshadowing of that coming glory.”3 It is this taste of glory itself that gives us hope in our present world.
God supplies creative talent
Finally, God is behind the artists’ talent themselves, as he has equipped them with artistic talents: “God himself inspires those who have breathtaking genius in the field of art. He makes them to see a beauty and to experience in their spirit something far beyond what the world can offer, something that, once it moves from their imagination to outward expression, enriches the world, delights those initiated into its meaning, and contributes to our human living something we never would have enjoyed were it not for this artistic capacity.”4 We have seen this manifested throughout time in a multitude of forms by various gifted artists and designers: for example, through Michelangelo’s grandiose Sistine chapel or listened through Bach’s cantatas. We also see this in elegant forms and structures of clothing and accessories. In Exodus 28, God equips those who will make the priestly garments: “You are to instruct all the skilled craftsmen, whom I have filled with a spirit of wisdom, to make Aaron’s garments for consecrating him to serve Me as priest.” This same sentiment continues with clothing designers in our time. Alexandre Paul Poiret, French fashion designer known as the “King of Fashion” during the early 20th century, said, “Whenever I sign a garment with my name, I consider myself as the creator of the masterpiece.” Poiret continues to inspire today’s designers, particularly in the fall 2026 Dior Men Collection.5 As humans made in the image of God with such privileged creative capacity, what a truly wonderful expression that it is indeed.
1. Wisdom and Wonder, p. 150.
2. 151
3. 144
4. 152
5. https://www.vogue.com/article/everything-you-need-to-know-about-paul-poiret