September 29, 2017 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

St. Michael and the Archangels

On this day, September 29th, the Western Rite of the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast Day of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael (the Eastern Rite celebrates it on either November 8th or 21st depending whether or not they use the Gregorian calendar).

Pope St. Gregory the Great (AD 540 – 604) mentions in one of his homilies: “You should be aware that the word “angel” denotes a function rather than a nature. Those holy spirits of heaven have indeed always been spirits. They can only be called angels when they deliver some message. Moreover, those who deliver messages of lesser importance are called angels; and those who proclaim messages of supreme importance are called archangels.”

Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, as angelic spirits, have no gender; and are designated saints by the Western Rite and Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church as a result of their special status as messengers of God. We discover this in Holy Scripture (specifically the books of, Genesis 28: 12-13, Daniel 9: 22-23, Tobit 12: 15,18,20, Luke 1: 26-56, the Epistle of Jude 1: 9, and Revelation 12: 1-17). The designation “saint” also refers to their ability to intercede for the people of God at the throne of God. The Western and Eastern Rites do not worship the angels or the saints. Worship is relegated to God alone – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The angels and the saints are venerated – offered great respect – but never worshipped.

I painted the above sacred image of St. Michael a number of years ago. Instead of inserting the typical military shield that is associated with this archangel, I inserted a representation of the Holy Eucharist. The Western and Eastern Rites believe that a validly ordained priest, upon saying the words of consecration during the Holy Mass, through the sacred power of his ordination to the priesthood, converts the substance of the bread and wine into the true Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. Worthy reception of the Eucharist (meaning the recipient is not in the state of Mortal Sin) enables the recipient to be transformed into the life of Christ. Christ’s life strengthens us in our daily spiritual battle. Thus, St. Michael is holding the Eucharist as a representation that Jesus Christ, in the Holy Eucharist, is our shield – our true defense – against the wiles of Satan. The Holy Eucharist has embossed upon it IC, XC which is the Greek abbreviation for Jesus Christ, and the letters NI KA (Nika), represent the Greek word or phrase, “victory,” or, “our victor”). You will notice that the blue lower wings are in a different position. The blue wings on the left of the image are slightly elevated. I painted it this way to emphasize the truth that St. Michael is always here to assist us in our spiritual battle. He is always ready to move, to “fly” to our aid and intercede for us. Pope Leo XIII reminds us in his famous exorcism prayer to St. Michael, that Michael helps us when we sincerely call upon him at times of sinful temptation.

St. Michael in the iconography of the Church is always represented with a shield. The shield may say “Who is like God?,” which was his response to Lucifer when the latter attempted to storm the throne of Heaven. St. Michael brings us the message that evil, sin, and the demons are real. We are in the midst of a spiritual war; but God is victorious and has given His Church – His people – the help that it needs through the Holy Scriptures, the Incarnation and Redemption, and the seven Holy Sacraments.

St. Gabriel’s message to us is that God loves His creation so much that He desires to enter into it, to redeem it, and provide for its salvation; however, He will not force Himself on humanity, and needed the young virgin Mary’s consent in order for this to take place (refer to Luke 1: 26-56 for the account of the Annunciation). The name Gabriel means “the Strength of God.” He is God’s major “ambassador” – the angelic representative of God to humanity. You can see this in Fra Angelico’s beautiful painting at the very top of this site’s masthead which represents him in a majestic and very dignified manner. Church tradition believes that he is the angel that also announced the good news of Christ’s birth to the shepherds, prior to Jesus’ birth comforted St. Joseph upon his hearing of Mary’s pregnancy, and consoled Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

St. Raphael’s message is that God heals us. He is found specifically in the Old Testament book of Tobit healing and ministering to humans. His name means “Medicine of God.” He cured Tobias, defended Sara, and assisted a young man on his pilgrimage with advice and companionship.

One of my former pastor’s, Father Nicholas Smith, mentioned in one of his morning homilies that the angels are here “to defend, serve, and help us. They are part of God’s family, and therefore, a part of ours.” These are beautiful words of comfort and consolation. Through our baptism we are members of God’s family, but until Father Smith’s homily, I never realized that the angels are part of our family, too!

May these three Holy Archangels help us this day, and every day, in assisting us on our path to God.

(Besides the Holy Scriptures listed above, I recommend a book entitled: St. Michael and the Angels, published in 1983 by TAN Books, it is filled with approved and scholarly sources on the nine choirs of angels).

March 26, 2017 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

Twelve Ethical Principles of a Christian Sacred Artist

My friends and fellow sacred artists, allow me to present to you my expression of twelve ethical principles that I have developed for members of the Fra Angelico Institute of Sacred Arts. These principles may be valuable to colleagues in other Rites and Denominations in fostering dialogue about these ideas. I write this as a preface to a series to follow at fraangelicoinstitute.com, on the spiritual and artistic values of Beato Fra Angelico. I perceive Fra Angelico as being one of the last artists of the Gothic Period in Western sacred art that was true to the tradition that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI speaks of in his book Spirit of the Liturgy. Please see the Explanatory Notes that follow these twelve principles. They further reveal my understanding of these points. Upon further discussion with you, these Principles may be edited to reflect your contributions. Thank you.

Twelve Ethical Principles of a Christian Sacred Artist

1) A Christian sacred artist’s work is wed to a Christ centered spirituality of service and tradition (with both a small “t” and a capital “T”).

2) A Christian sacred artist bases his or her work on prayer.

3) A Christian sacred artist’s spirituality has its roots firmly planted in Sacred Scripture and Church history.

4) A Christian sacred artist’s spirituality is enlivened when he or she prayerfully unites their inner senses (common sense, imagination, cognition, and sense-memory) fortified by faith, to their creativity.

5) Christian sacred artists recognize that the main work of the Church is threefold: spreading the good news of Christ’s Gospel message, prayer, and for the Western and Eastern Rites of the Church providing the Holy Sacraments (Holy Mysteries) to the faithful.

6) Christian sacred artists are a critical part of the liturgical work and prayer of the Church. They produce sacred arts that are sacramentals if they conform to the aesthetic, semantic, and theological principles of the faith.

7) Christian sacred artists believe that the grace of God compliments and strengthens their technical expertise.

8) Christian sacred artists believe that the act of making their work, and the finished product, is not just art; it is communion with the great mystery of God made visible in Christ and His saints.

9) Christian sacred artists who are members of the Western and Eastern Rites recognize that the creation of sacred art may be viewed as a liturgical act.

10) Christian sacred artists produce art that clearly teaches and preaches the lessons of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, and the Creeds of the Church, thus allowing their artistic message to contribute toward individual and congregational transformation in Christ.

11) Christian sacred artists are aware of the teachings of the 7^th Ecumenical Council (2^nd Council of Nicaea, AD 787) as it applies to icons and the role that the contributions of St. John of Damascus played in its debates.

12) Western and Eastern Rite sacred artists are aware of, and subscribe to, the principles that apply to sacred art within the writings of their spiritual leaders.

Explanatory notes – the numbers below correspond to the number of the specific Principle above:

1) The small “t” relates to cultural norms of a specific Rite or denomination. The capital “T” refers to Church Tradition as specified by Jesus Christ, the Apostles, the Fathers of the Church, and the many hierarchical pronouncements proclaimed by Popes, Patriarchs, and Bishops of the Western and Eastern Rites of the Church.

2) Christian sacred artists undertake a great spiritual responsibility. This responsibility requires that the artist be firmly rooted in faith, grace, and prayer for they are promoting the truth, goodness, and beauty of Almighty God, His angels, and saints. Sacred artists are assisted in this by understanding that certain artistic schools or methods, an example being abstract expressionism, have no place in the sacred art of the Church.

3) This unity allows a sacred artist, through prayer, to walk the various paths of Holy Scripture and experience the moment that the Scripture, or story of the saints, presents to the soul. This experience feeds and transforms the sacred artist by affecting the clarity, line, and color of their art. This is how Beato Fra Angelico experienced the Crucifixion, and according to Vasari, as he painted it wept over the enormity of Christ’s sacrifice. In this process Fra Angelico prefigures Ignatius of Loyola by about 100 years in the ability to experience the words of Holy Scripture within his imagination. The use of the word – “imagination” – does not mean or imply “fantasy,” nor does the person at prayer “make-up” images not found in the Gospels or Church history. St. Andrei Rublev, Beato Fra Angelico, St. Ignatius of Loyola and others utilized this type of prayer experience to affect their work.

4) What is prayer? The saints tell us that prayer is the turning of the heart toward Our Lord God and allowing the mind and heart to sincerely speak words of love to Him. It is the connection, the sharing, of rational mind and free will to conversational intimacy with Our Lord, His angels and saints. The sacred artist enters into communion with God through prayer and this communion comforts and assists the sacred artist in their work.

5) The Western and Eastern Rites go a step further and affirm that preaching the Gospel message and delivering the Holy Sacraments (Holy Mysteries) is critical for the spiritual health and salvation of God’s people.

6) An icon is a sacred image (confer John 1:14). An iconographer follows specific traditions of craftsmanship and specific elements of Theological (Scriptural and dogmatic content), Semantic (the visual language of the icon, appropriate perspective, the use of light, line, and color to create form, and correct use of signs and symbols within the icon), and Aesthetic principles (the quality of beauty with the icon itself). These three principles are based upon the sacred Tradition of the Church. The history of the Western and Eastern Rites illustrates that the sacred artist has continually moved through different artistic periods and technical understanding. As it relates to sacred art, the Western Rite of the Church moved out of an Iconographic period into the Gothic period, and then onto the Baroque period. The Eastern Rite stayed within the period of Iconography that developed out of the early centuries of the Church. Cultural conditions, access to earth pigments, and artistic differences affected the Iconographic period within the Eastern Rite of the Church. It is important to note that within the Western Rite a sacred image is an image that is created of a historical holy person or religious scene; however, the artist allows their full creativity and personal interpretation to enter into the craftsmanship and artistic process. Personal creativity and technique, while present within Iconography, is not seen as an important issue. An example of an icon is St. Andrei Rublev’s image of Christ, or his icon of the Holy Trinity. An example of a sacred image is Pietro Annigoni’s image of St. Joseph and the child Jesus in Joseph’s workshop, or Masaccio’s Holy Trinity. I am indebted to one of my teachers of iconography, Marek Czarnecki (whose teacher was Ksenia Pokrovsky), for clarifying the elements of theological, semantic, and aesthetic tradition for me.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI provides a wonderful overview of the three periods of sacred art within the Western Rite in his book Spirit of the Liturgy. You will notice that he does not include the Renaissance within the three traditions. Historical research has shown that Renaissance artists were not inspired so much by prayer in the production of their art; rather, they were motivated by the desire to please themselves, their patrons, or the profit motive. Some of the Renaissance sacred images do have spiritual value and can motivate the viewer to prayer and communion with God.

Icons, sacred images, woodcarvings, calligraphy and other sacred arts if based on the Holy Gospels and Church Tradition spread the good news of the Gospel. The sacred arts are sacramentals when they point the way to God. Sacramentals are blessings. The seven Sacraments (Holy Mysteries) provide the grace that interiorly heal and nourish us. Sacramentals, however, assist us in the exterior visualization of Our Lord Jesus who made that process possible through His Incarnation. It also assists us in the visualization of His angels and especially His saints, who modeled Jesus in their own lives. To picture this one has only to view an icon of St. Seraphim of Sarov, and remember his words that “A true hope seeks only the Kingdom of God…the heart can have no peace until it obtains such a hope. This hope pacifies the heart and produces joy within it.” Christian sacred artists are “hope filled” people.

7) Within the Western Rite, it is believed that “Our justification comes from the grace of God which was merited for us by the Passion of Christ. Grace is a participation in the life of God. Justification is conferred through the Sacramental grace of Baptism. Grace is the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to His call to become children of God, adoptive sons and daughters, partakers of the divine nature and eternal life” (confer John 1:12-18; 17:3; Romans 8: 14-17; 2 Peter 1:3-4). As the Council of Trent teaches – grace is known by faith – and as Our Lord teaches in Matthew 7: 20 “You will know them by their fruits” (confer Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2^nd edition, paragraphs 1987 through 2005).

8) Contemporary Greek artist and iconographer, Dr. George Kordis, writes of this principle in his book Icon As Communion.

9) In the Western Rite, liturgy as defined in the New Testament, “refers not only to the celebration of divine worship but also to the proclamation of the Gospel and to active charity” (confer Luke 1:23; Acts 13:2; Romans 15:16, 27; 2 Corinthians 9:12; Philippians 2: 14-17, 25, 30. Confer Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2^nd edition, and paragraphs 1066 through 1209). The work of a sacred artist (this of course includes all the sacred arts) can be viewed as a liturgical act because it provides a service to our neighbor, in that the sacred art elucidates the reality of the truth, goodness, and beauty of God by providing a means for the individual to hear or visualize that reality. The sacred artist assists the Church in making the reality of Christ present within the community of believers. Sacred artists, by providing this service, are participants in active charity. They aid in providing a “visible sign of communion in Christ between God and men” (confer paragraph 1071, Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2^nd edition).

10) Transformation in Christ is a spiritual process. Writers within both the Latin and Greek Rites of the Church and the various Protestant denominations have extensively written about it. The Holy Bible, the Philokalia, Dietrich von Hildebrand, and many other writers provide very helpful advice on this topic.

11) Christian sacred artists, as they study iconography and the various manifestations of sacred art need to also be aware of the significant contributions of Leonid Ouspensky, George Kordis, Aidan Hart, David Clayton, Jonathan Pageau, and the Monk Patrick Doolan. There is enough wisdom in their words and works to advance the studies of any serious Christian sacred artist.

12) Some of the Popes have expressed valuable artistic insights, which will assist the Western sacred artist in their comprehension of their task. A few examples of this are: Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s book The Spirit of the Liturgy, Pope St. John Paul II’s Letter to Artists, and Pope Pius XII’s 1947 encyclical, Mediator Dei. The encyclical Mediator Dei explains in paragraph 187, that “Three characteristics of which our predecessor Pope Pius X^thspoke should adorn all liturgical services: sacredness, which abhors any profane influence; nobility, which true and genuine arts should serve and foster; and universality, which, while safeguarding local and legitimate custom, reveals the catholic unity of the Church” (Pius XII referenced this from an Apostolic Letter of Pope Pius X of November 1903). These three principles, when united with the principles of aesthetic, semantic, and theological truth, provide the Christian sacred artist with a firm foundation on which to build their creative work.

Thank you for reading this and I look forward to your comments, Deacon Paul O. Iacono.

Images:

Christ-Pantocrator.-Andrei-Rublev.-1410-1420s.-The-central-part-of-the-iconographic-Deesis-of-Zvenigorod.-Moscow-The-State-Tretyakov-Gallery

St. Andrei Rublev’s Christ (completed 1410, above) and his The Trinity (1411, or 1425-27) trinity-rublev-1410

Masaccio_Holy_Trinity

Masaccio’s Holy Trinity (completed 1428, above) and

Annigoni’s St. Joseph the Worker (altarpiece, completed 1963, below) annigoni, st joseph

February 3, 2017 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

Paul in Arabia and Damascus

Galatians 1:15-18 relates St. Paul saying: “But when God, who had set me apart from the time when I was in my mother’s womb, called me through His grace and chose to reveal His Son in me, so that I should preach Him to the Gentiles, I was in no hurry to confer with any human being, or to go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before me. Instead I went off into Arabia, and later I came back to Damascus. Only after three years did I go up to Jerusalem to meet Cephas (Peter). I stayed fifteen days with him.”

St. Paul’s wanderings were not without profit. Galatians, being the first Epistle after Luke’s Acts of the Apostles, relates Paul’s working through how his life had changed since his theophany of Jesus Christ. It relates his plan for spreading the Good News, debating issues of Jewish Law, and invoking all to live in the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Time undoubtedly was spent praying about how the Lord was working in his life, what the Lord was requesting of him, future plans, settling up business affairs in Damascus, and other large and small personal issues.

We all go through periods similar to those just described by St. Paul. So has it been for me. No theophany was experienced (!) but personal and medical issues have had their affect. The lessons learned echoes what is read in the first chapter of Galatians. I am better for it. For all types of adversities are allowed by the Lord, not because He wants us to suffer, but “to burnish us,” to make us shine with the virtues of fortitude, humility, and patient endurance. As the Saint says: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit…”

I see from the subscription list that this blog site has not lost any subscribers, in fact over the last two years of inactivity it has increased in membership. Thank you! I have plans for new posts for the upcoming months, specifically a series on the spirituality and virtues of Beato Fra Angelico and how they influenced his art. Are the virtues of a 15th century Italian Dominican priest transferable to us? I believe so, because, in reality, they are based on the Beatitudes that all Christians, regardless of Rite or denomination, hold dear.

May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Thanks, talk to you soon.The above sacred image is an unfinished copy of St. Paul based on St. Andrei Rublev’s masterpiece. It is being painted by Deacon Paul O. Iacono. It is egg tempera on a gessoed wood panel.

February 9, 2015 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

Jesus Our Savior – A Sacred Image in the Iconographic Tradition

I have the happy service of presenting a new workshop to interested adults from Massachusetts and Rhode Island beginning on Saturday February 14th, 2015.

In an attempt to give everyone individual attention the class is currently filled at a limit of ten people. We will be pursuing our studies of painting sacred images in the Latin iconographic tradition. I hope to make the artists aware of the importance of studying the Latin and Byzantine origins of sacred images and its inevitable blossoming within the Greek and Russian civilizations.

The workshop will run over a five-week period, for a total of twenty hours of class time. While they will not be painting the sacred image that is found below of Jesus Our Savior, the technique that I used to paint this image will be taught to the artists. Note that the image is painted using acrylic paints; however, I have developed a different approach in manipulating the layers of the paints. This approach evolved out of studying the work of the 12th century Benedictine monk, Theophilus the Presbyter (whom I have written about in previous essays on this blog), and my own experiments over the past few years of working with egg tempera and acrylic paints.

I specialize in painting personal prayer images (9 by 12 inches, or 12 by 16 inches) rather than images that would be found in large church or chapel applications. The image found below (95% finished) is typical of my approach. It is an image that the person in prayer can relate to, yet, it also carries a sense of transcendence. This approach will be taught in the upcoming workshop. I attempt to teach simplicity in both technique and spirituality. I avoid flourishes and excessive naturalism in facial or garment representation. In this way I have ignored the typical approach of many Latin Rite sacred artists from the mid 14th century onward. I am attempting to rediscover, or reestablish, the Latin Rite techniques of painting sacred icons. This endeavor is a work in progress!

In the upcoming workshop the students will be studying my technique and actually paint an image of St. Michael the Archangel. Upon completion of that sacred image, they will eventually move on to painting an image of the Holy Theotokos, the Blessed Mother, and then complete the sequence in studying and painting a sacred image of Jesus Christ. In upcoming posts I will be blogging about their experience and the steps that they will take in completing the sacred image of St. Michael.

My approach to the painting of sacred images in the iconographic tradition owes a debt of gratitude to my many teachers in the Byzantine and secular artistic traditions. I also owe a profound thank you to the Holy Spirit, whose grace has enabled my hands to paint sacred images. I pray that my sacred art has not offended Him. The image below appears slightly brighter than it actually is as a result of the flash.

November 7, 2014 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

Link to the Film Within the Post: The Sacred Artist’s Cultivation of Silence

A few readers have emailed me to say that they are having a problem linking to the film mentioned in yesterday’s post. Since many subscribers receive these postings through their email address the easiest way to link to the film is to click on the blue title of the post that appears at the top of your opened email. When you single or double click on this blue title you are redirected to the actual website. The film appears within the website posting.

Another way to connect to the film is to go down to the last part of the opened email and you see the titles of the “tags and categories.” Connected to this section is a URL address, if you click on that URL address it will redirect you to the film, too. It is much easier to read the posts if you come to the actual website rather than trying to read the tiny print of the email.

I have Cox Communications and when the posts come back to me in my email they are appearing in a font size that is close to size 8, which is pretty hard to read for these old eyes! So click on the blue title and it will redirect you to the website which is in a much bigger, and more enjoyable, font. If you still are having problems, please email me and I will make other arrangements for you to see the film.

October 1, 2014 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

The Way of Beauty On-Line Course and Reimbursement Scholarship Opportunities

The mission of the Fra Angelico Institute for the Sacred Arts is to teach the truth, goodness, and beauty of God through the prayerful creation of sacred art.

We are happy to announce that we have recently entered into a partnership with Thomas More College of Liberal Arts to present a wonderful on-line course to anyone interested in Catholic Culture and the sacred art of the Church. We also have a special opportunity for teachers of history, art, religion, and the humanities in Catholic high schools of the Diocese of Providence who complete this course.

Thomas More College of Liberal Arts is offering an on-line course entitled The Way of Beauty. This course has been designed by David Clayton and is being successfully implemented at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts. David is an Oxford University graduate, sacred artist, published author and broadcaster, and holds the position of Artist-in-Residence and lecturer in Liberal Arts at the College. David is passionate about Catholic art and music, the forms it has taken through the centuries, and the reinvigoration of Catholic culture. David’s blog can be found at www.thewayofbeauty.org.

As stated on the College website the Way of Beauty course “focuses on what shapes a Catholic culture and what makes it beautiful. It discusses the general connection between worship, culture and beauty particularly through the prism of visual art. The course program consists of a 13 episode video series and an e-book written by David Clayton. This book is only available to those who take this course. Participants who complete the on-line program are eligible to receive 25 hours of Continuing Education Units endorsed by Thomas More College of Liberal Arts. The College is regionally accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Time spent in this program may also be able to be used towards later college credit offerings.” The cost of the on-line course is $99.00.

For the 2014-2015 academic year, The Fra Angelico Institute will provide reimbursement scholarships, through a competitive selection process, to Diocese of Providence high school teachers who enroll and complete the Way of Beauty on-line course.

In an attempt to provide a competitive atmosphere among the teachers, The Fra Angelico Institute for the Sacred Arts will provide a total of five reimbursement scholarships, one per high school, to Catholic high school teachers with the best implementation process.

In order to enter the competition to receive the reimbursement scholarship an interested Diocesan teacher will:

1) Notify the Fra Angelico Institute of their interest through our email at frainstitute@cox.net.

2) Formally register by clicking on the tab and following the prompts for the On-Line Course through www.thewayofbeauty.org.

3) Through the teacher’s personal Google account, participate in the program which consists of 13 on-line videos (approximately 30 minutes apiece) produced in association with Catholic TV.

4) Read the e-book – The Way of Beauty: Liturgy, Education, Art, and Inspiration. This e-book has been written exclusively for this course.

5) Submit on school stationary a statement from the teacher that the course has been completed, a one-page summary of how the course will be actually implemented in their curriculum, and one or two suggestions on how the course may be improved.

6) Submit a letter from the principal of their high school stating that they support the teacher in their desire to implement the goals of this course.

Using the US Postal System, these documents should be mailed to: Deacon Paul Iacono, Fra Angelico Institute for the Sacred Arts, St. Francis of Assisi Church, 114 High Street, Wakefield, RI 02879.

We hope you enjoy the course and best wishes to the teachers who compete for the reimbursement scholarships!

September 22, 2014 by Deacon Paul O. Iacono

Albert Lapierre – Sacred Artist and Iconographer

This past July I had the pleasure of restoring an icon that was written by the fine artist, Albert Lapierre, from Attleboro, Massachusetts. It is a beautifully done and was commissioned by Joan O’Gara on the occasion of the birthday of her sister, Rosalind, in October, 1998.

Rosalind told me that her sister knew of her appreciation and devotion to the Gospel account of the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth; however, Joan was not able to locate a print of this particular icon. In 1997 Joan decided to contact Albert Lapierre who was resposible for the creation of many religious objects, statues, and sacred images. Prior to his passing he had a store and studio in Attleboro, Massachusetts. There are many examples of his work at the LaSalette Shrine in Attleboro.

At the time of Joan’s request, Albert was busily engaged at the Shrine with many projects, and was reluctant to take on another commission. Joan persuaded him, however, to take on this project – telling him that “Our Lady really wanted him to paint this image.” I am told that he didn’t have a comeback for that request!

Mr. Lapierre was able to fit its creation into his busy schedule and it was varnished and ready to be delivered by October, 1998. Needless to say, Rosalind was thrilled by Joan’s gift and it remains to this day an important focal point in Rosalind’s prayer life.

Time does take its toll and the icon sustained some accidental damage over the years. Rosalind located me through a Google search and phoned for a consult. She was especially concerned about areas that had chipped and lost pigment. We met and discussed the damage and she requested that I try to repair it as best as possible.

The repair turned out to be an interesting challenge. First, I believe that it is absolutely essential that a restorer not impact or change the design, colors, or compositional elements of the piece being restored. Respect for the original artist, and what they created, is paramount. Ultimately, the viewer must be able look at the restored piece and be unaware of the fact that it has been restored. There should be no distractions from the original intent of the artist.

My biggest challenge in this restoration was matching the original colors. For this particular icon Mr. Lapierre used acrylics. Since the painting was only seventeen years old, and had not been kept in direct sunlight, the paint had not deteriorated or dulled to any great degree. Thus, my task was to repair the chips that could be restored and then blend in the pigment restoration. The restoration was a success and it was blessed, and delivered to a grateful Rosalind, at a Mass here in South Kingstown at St. Francis of Assisi Church in August 2014.

Albert Lapierre died a number of years ago. Sadly, I never met the man that created such a sensitive and dynamic icon. It was a distinct honor to work on it. I thank Joan and Rosalind O’Gara for the privilege of doing so.

Below are a few images of the piece with a close-up of Mary’s face, and the beautiful catechetical scene of Elizabeth’s husband, Zechariah, praying in the Temple.

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