The Dark Ages: Christian Imagery & Atheist Interpretation

Gary Hill

In addition to Veronica, patron saint of photographers (and, apparently, laundry workers), photography and Christianity share two important concepts, that of light and darkness. In Christian symbolism, darkness reliably conveys the notion of evil, death and the unknown. In contrast, light conveys only positive aspects such as life, goodness and hope. For example, Genesis tells us that God not only created light, he also saw that it was good. The New Testament describes Jesus as the light of the world and the visionary revelations of John depict Heaven in terms of light. The medieval use of coloured and stained glass within European churches is probably the best physical example of Christianity symbolising the goodness of light; as if the colourful light of the heavens floods the interior of the otherwise dark church with goodness.

Photographers are able to manipulate the light and darkness in a scene in two ways. First, symbolically, they might purposely include a large amount of darkness within the frame (labelled, fittingly, as negative space) to convey the notions of evil, trepidation, unknown, horror etc. Second, they might also include negative space or relative darkness simply as a means of diverting attention to the subject of their image.

As an atheist, I view Christian imagery and iconography wholly as depictions of mythology and consider them to convey stories and ideas and perhaps some abstract or metaphorical truths, but not necessary literal truths. This gives me much to play with in terms of interpreting the imagery as photography because I feel no onus to deal with the symbolism according to tradition, or to present Christian imagery in the ‘right light’. Consequently, although I freely use Christian imagery concerning itself with death, I do not naturally equate the symbolic use of darkness with evil. Rather, I sense solitude and calmness, ignorance, or the unknown, all of which are able to be dispelled by the light.

Silhouette of crosses and spires, the central spire has a bird sitting on top

A stone plaque of the Virgin Mary fixed to a wall and surrounded by a leafless thorny bush

Cross and open Bible lit by available light in an ancient church

Stone angel cowering in a dark corner of an old church

A church pulpit photographed from underneath with an extended hand holding a cross reaching outward

Silhouette of an old church bell with a menacing sky

A gravestone depicting the Christian symbolism of Virgin Mary hugging a cross

Three gravestone at various angles in the frontal plane in a moody churchyard

A stained glass window casts dappled light on the wooden pews of an old church

Statuette of the Virgin Mary behind flowers in a small grotto

A stone statue wearing a hood with hands clasped to eyes as if crying

Reflection of a dark cross within a lighter triangle on the wall of an old church

Creased image of the spine of an old Bible

Dark image of an old church with the lectern bible open on Ezekiel

Artwork depicting a wooden cross and a crown of thorns balanced on top, found in an old, dimly lit church

Side view of a stone statue kneeling and praying

A moody sky and leafless trees with a solid stone cross in silhouette photographed from below

A painting of the Virgin Mary with vases of flowers in front and a shaft of light emanating from above and lighting her face

Silhouette of a stone cross in front of large stained glass windows with a crucifixion scene

Dimly lit interior of ancient church with motion-blurred beams of light entering from outside

Statue of a preacher holding a bible in one hand and a cross in the other with a shadow behind and to the side

'The Dark Ages: Christian Imagery & Atheist Interpretation'. Original images and written content © Gary Hill 2021. All rights reserved. Not in public domain. If you wish to use my work for anything other than legal 'fair use' (i.e., non-profit educational or scholarly research or critique purposes) please contact me for permission first.