Behold!: Behold the Lamb of God: Calligrapher Timothy Botts Points His Pens at Handel’s Messiah and Makes the Words Sing

Senior art director for Tyndale House Publishers, Timothy Botts is best known for his creative calligraphy. His first book, Doorposts, has sold over 80,000 copies since its release in 1986. A second book, Windsongs, is a collection of hymn texts drawn in his distinctive calligraphy. A third book, Sunday Doorposts, is clip art usable for bulletin covers or newsletters. CT talked to Botts about his newest book, Messiah, which sets Handel’s famous oratorio in expressive word pictures.

What encouraged you to think about doing Messiah?

When Mark Taylor, president of Tyndale House Publishers, mentioned doing a Christmas gift book, I was a little negative, but I respected his wishes enough to think about it. At about the same time, I heard a portion of Messiah on the radio, and the two came together for me. If I was going to do a book for Christmas, I wanted to take people beyond Jesus in the manger, to tell the whole story. I realized this was the perfect opportunity, because Messiah starts from the Old Testament prophecy before Jesus comes, then takes us through his life, his death, his resurrection, and his future reign. It’s all there.

My first two books are more like collections, and I wanted in this book to create more wholeness. Since Messiah really is a collection of Scripture to tell the story of the gospel, I wanted to get that same progression visually.

The word behold is used five or six times throughout the text. That word became probably the most significant word as far as what I was trying to do—that people might really see the Messiah, might feel in a new way the word Behold! I like to think of my calligraphy as a kind of incarnation of the Word; I feel honored if I can make him known in a new way.

What process did you go through in relating to the music of Messiah?

I had to go to Crawfordsville, Indiana, in June 1990 to work on our new Bible for Children. I stayed in a hotel room for nearly two weeks—I don’t normally get a chance to be a hermit—and I went through the whole Messiah score three times. The first time I listened to the music and only made brush strokes and marks of color. The second time I responded to the meaning of the words. And then a third time, I began to make more comprehensive sketches.

Are you a musician as well as a calligrapher?

I play the piano. I studied with my grandfather as I was growing up, then continued to play—at church, and in teaching my children. Now my second son plays better than I do.

What are some of the pieces you feel are most influenced by Handel’s music?

Take “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; and they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.” I remembered that Handel’s music was not unlike an aimless walk, so my letter forms take that kind of shape on the left-hand side of the spread. But as they move toward the light, they become more resolute, and they have an aim to them. I was influenced by the music in that way.

Handel did a lot of the work for me. All I had to do was listen and pay attention.

Are there other places in Messiah where his influence came into play?

It was primarily in the majestic choruses, where Handel painted with his music. I think “Surely” is one of the strongest. I was stunned by his sensitivity to the content of the words, because the word surely is so intense in his music. It is so significant to the text because it illustrates the sense of purpose with which Jesus faced his last act on Earth. It is also a word of certainty for the believer. I translated that visually by making the word surely go off the edge of the paper to illustrate the kind of power I felt helpless to draw in comparison to a many-voiced choir with instruments accompanying.

Your calligraphy is not like that of others—what you do is much more freeform. What pushed you in that direction?

One influence was work by Sister Corita Kent when it was exhibited at Carnegie, where I went to school. It opened a window for me, because I identified with her attempts to express her Christian faith—the joy of it, the naivete, the power—all those things that were not part of past tradition, which was to do something from another century. I saw that she was a twentieth-century person making a relevant statement. It was definitely out of the sixties, with raucous colors and naively done—not sophisticated lettering, but like what a child would do.

In your notes in Messiah, you admit several times to breaking the rules of calligraphy. How have you done this?

That’s an important issue, because in other areas of my life I very much believe you should follow rules. I recently told a workshop I was teaching, “I really need to think this through, whether I’m being consistent in my life when I break rules in some areas and not in others.” A lady answered, “It depends on who is making the rules.” That was very insightful. So the rules I am talking about are man-made conventions. For example, if there is a style of lettering where the letters are thin and I decide to make them fat, I will do that throughout the alphabet. It is when you consistently break the rules that you create a new form that has integrity within itself. And so it becomes a new hand. I hope I am inventive rather than just doing what’s been done before.

What are some of the other rules you break from time to time?

The shape, the slant of the letters, the position in which I write, holding the pen in the wrong hand, using some unconventional tools.

What about materials? What are some of the nontraditional media you use?

Painting with my fingers, or using a shading brush or a stick. Often these are attempts to do something that is more raw, because, as you know, Messiah includes some very difficult sections. You can’t paint a pretty picture of the ridicule of the crowd or the torture Jesus suffered. On the other hand, I’m the same calligrapher that can do beautiful letter forms. I find that I almost need to use crude tools sometimes to bring out something that isn’t refined.

Tell us how living in Japan influenced your work.

I lived there for three years working for the Brethren in Christ mission. My wife and I taught conversational English and we also taught Bible classes. During that time, I had a chance to study Japanese brush writing, and I just soaked up the culture.

People will notice that I tend to use a lot of asymmetry, which is a throwback to Asian approaches.

Also, I began to learn the value of simplicity. Granted, I am going all over the spreads with lettering in some cases. But there are times when the pages become very quiet, and I remember the Japanese love of white space. One of my favorite pages that expresses this is where it describes “O Death, where is thy sting?”

How long have you been doing calligraphy?

Twenty-five years. I didn’t know anything about calligraphy when I entered art school, but at Carnegie all freshman art students were required to study calligraphy. I walked into the class not knowing what it was.

I recognize especially in the Christian community that my calligraphy has given me acceptance as an artist, because we are lovers of the word and we realize the value of the Word. So I like to think of my calligraphy as a bridge with the evangelical community that appreciates the Word and, I hope, draws them more and more into an appreciation of visual art.

Eugene H. Peterson is pastor of Christ Our King Presbyterian Church, Bel Air, Maryland, and author of A Long Obedience in the Same Direction (InterVarsity) and Answering God (Harper & Row), both of which are about the Psalms.

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