From the Fire Comes Praise
From the Fire Comes Praise:
Interview with O’shane Howard
By Andrea Nwabuike
There is a language spoken in Toronto. It is not a language that can be taught; rather it is inherited, woven into the DNA of the communities that call the city home. This mode of communication prefers the fluidity of rhythm over the restrictions of grammar. It proudly embraces the ethnic diversity of the city in its vocabulary. From the start of my conversation with O’shane Howard, I knew that we were both fluent in this language.
Howard greeted me with the warmth and familiarity of an old friend. We waded through the usual pleasantries of this odd season of life, addressing the adjustments and disruptions that COVID-19 had forced upon us. Howard likened quarantine to being on a deserted island, choosing to make the most with the raw materials available to him. From these materials he had chosen to rest, teach and create. His perspective strikes me, as it affirms a lesson I am learning in my own quarantine journey: Trust in the Father, even when circumstances would tempt you to do otherwise. This truth was as the soundtrack of our conversation.
Howard’s calling to the field of photography was somewhat unexpected. After being inspired by one of his teachers in college, he fixed his gaze on a career in editing. But as with most creatives, curiosity took over and Howard began his exploration in the field of photography. Under the mentorship of some friends and colleagues, Howard spent time on shoots sharpening his eye and building a portfolio. When the opportunity to pursue freelance photography presented itself, Howard took the risk. He explains, “I pretty much just dived into this world not knowing what I was diving in to. But I’m a risk-taker and I have a lot of support.”
Howard’s humble confidence is a credit to the strong men and women that have spoken into his life. He was eager to discuss the diligence and fortitude he witnessed in his family members, particularly his grandmother. With awe he recalls that his grandmother, “…would literally wake up at 4:30 in the morning and then go to work for her first job at 7 a.m., do an eight hour shift and then after go to her second job and do an eight hour shift and I watched her do that for twenty years.” His grandmother’s hard work and consistency not only shapes Howard’s approach to his craft, but it also nurtures his spiritual growth.
Salvation requires an individual encounter with God but our faith is shaped and moulded within the context of community. Howard’s testimony reflects the tension of individuality and collectivism in the Christian faith. He remembers, “I became a Christian two years ago… I didn’t grow up in a Christian home. I never went to church; well I went to church but at that point when you’re younger you’re just going because of your aunty or your grandmother”.
“Seeing how God was working through the people around me really showed me He was real. It was just a matter of having my own encounter with Him, having my own relationship with Him. And because of that I had my own turning point to give my life to Him.” This turning point invited Howard to take another risk in creating projects that would explicitly discuss the various facets of the Christian experience.
Howard’s recent project, Praise and Worship, accepts this invitation. Through the use of film, photography and a playlist, the series captures the vibrancy of praise and worship in the Afro-Caribbean church context. Howard explained that the idea for the project was birthed out of a curiosity around what Christian art looked like. After Googling “Christian art”, he was disappointed by what he found. “I seen art that didn’t speak to me and I seen art that I would never buy and hang up in my living room”.
After speaking with other Christians who shared the same bitter aftertaste left by Christian art, Howard began to ask questions. Questions like: “Why… why does it have to be this way? Why do we feel that because the Word is behind the art, the execution doesn’t have to be at a high level too?” It seems that God responded to his question with the call to produce art that is both faithful to the Word of God and excellent in its execution. Praise and Worship is the fruit of Howard’s obedience.
Flowing garments of gold, white and blue move poignantly against the backdrop of soft grass and wheat covered fields. The dancers wave tambourines and fans, simple tools that become breathtaking instruments of worship when utilized with skill. The series exudes a mesmerizing elegance and strength, just as gold that has been extracted from fire. This imagery of a refining fire features prominently in the short film. In its first half, Pastor Steven Furtick’s husky voice describes a depth of praise that can only be known through a personal experience with God. Furtick defines this praise as one that is discovered, “when you’ve been through the fire and you realize that God is still faithful, even in the fire.”
The journey to releasing the Praise and Worship series was a refining experience of its own. The project was initially shot in October 2019. Howard laments, “We were running out of time, certain things didn’t go according to plan. It was us against the sun. By the time I got to the fourth look the sun was already going down so all of those photos came out blurry. In my head I was super, super upset”. When plans to reschedule the shoot fell through, Howard’s initial passion gave way to disappointment.
“It’s been sitting on my laptop for four months and I would look at it sometimes and its like ugh…ugh. And it’s weird because like two weeks before Easter and just when all this COVID-19 thing was occurring and everything had to be on lockdown, God just rest it on my heart to just look at the project again. And I looked at the project again and as I’m scrolling through everything, I don’t know why, but I just fell in love with the whole series again.”
With renewed vision, Howard and his cinematographer, Tristan Barrocks, began reviewing and editing what they had captured in the fall. The project was released progressively over the next few weeks, culminating in the release of the short film on Easter Sunday. Our conversation paused for a brief moment as we both marveled at God’s perfect timing.
Howard is convinced that it was God’s sovereign plan for Praise and Worship to be released at such a time as this, when homes across the world are filled with open, truth-seeking hearts. In sharing about the response to the project he notes, “It was really received well by people that were Christian but more so by people that weren’t Christian. I’ve had people message me and even put on their Instagram stories that, when I first clicked on this video I had my guard up but as I got to the end it really moved me to believe in something.”
“I believe that because it was released at this time it really touched people and really impacted people. And that’s essentially what I wanted. It wasn’t about me, it was about me just using the talents that God gave me to create this project, but also at the same time creating Christian projects that I want to see. Because I don’t see why I can execute client’s that hire me at a high level… why can’t I do the same thing for Christian projects at a very high level?” For Howard, a good and gracious God is deserving of nothing less than his best. To create with excellence is to offer the Father a quality of worship that pleases His heart.
Howard echoes this sentiment in his hopes for the future of Christian art, “I hope that Praise and Worship births ideas within other Christian artists or gives other Christian artists the belief system and the faith to take the skills that God has given them to use it and glorify Him and create timeless pieces that will live on forever.”
We are people of a timeless faith. The God that breathed life into Adam’s lungs is the same God that sustains our every breath. The gospel that reformed first century hearts is the same gospel that has rescued our souls from the grips of sin. A timeless faith demands timeless art. Art that takes the risk of speaking unchanging truths in the language of the culture, thus eliciting praise.
Andrea Nwabuike
Writer & Counsellor
Photography and Video by O’shane Howard