Can contemporary art say anything about spirituality? John Updike calls modern art "a religion assembled from the fragments of our daily life," but does that mean that contemporary art is spiritual? What might it mean to say that the art you make expresses your spiritual belief?
On the Strange Place of Religion in Contemporary Art explores the curious disconnection between spirituality and current art. This book will enable you to walk into a museum and talk about the spirituality that is or is not visible in the art you see.

James Elkins is Professor of Art History, Theory and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and Chair of Art History at University College, Cork, Ireland. Among his books are Pictures and Tears, VisualStudies: a Skeptical Introduction, What Painting Is,Stories of Art, and How to Use Your Eyes, all published by Routledge.

Preface, The Words Religion and Art, A Very Brief History of Religion in Art, How Some Scholars Deal with the Question, Five Stories, Kim's Story Explained: The End of Religious Art, Rehema's Story Explained: The Creation of New Faiths, Brian's Story Explained: Art that Is Critical of Religion, Ria's Story Explained: How Artists Try to Burn Away Religion, Joel's Story Explained: Unconscious Religion, Some Words to Describe Spiritual Art, Conclusions, Notes, Index