Today, we learned about the importance of relics within Renaissance art and religion in general. As a non-religious person, the culture surrounding relics was relatively unbeknownst to me. Relics are sacred and holy pieces connected to Saints and other important religious figures. The esteem that they are viewed in has both positive and negative associations. On one hand, they offer a closer connection to religion. On the other hand, there is a large black market in the production and existence of relics existing as far back as the 12th century. It is interesting to me to consider the importance of relics both in the religious context and artistic one. I feel like there is great power in viewing something that many find incredibly important. For example, even though I am not Muslim, I still deeply enjoyed visiting Mosques throughout Turkey when I visited. However, not everyone is like me, so I think it will be important to balance the cultural and aesthetic contexts in my exhibition.