Art

HAIL, MARY, FULL OF GRACE: A New Look at the Annunciation

March 25, 2013 By Kathy Schiffer 1 Comment

On March 25—exactly nine months before Christmas—the Catholic Church commemorates the Annunciation, when the Angel Gabriel appeared to a young Jewish girl and told her that God would like her to be the mother of the Savior. “How can this be,” Mary responded, “since I know not man?”

Contemporary artist John Collier tells the story of the Annunciation in a fresh way in this painting, which can be found in the narthex of St. Gabriel Catholic Church in McKinney, Texas.

In Collier’s “Annunciation,” Mary is a young schoolgirl dressed in blue and white. When the angel Gabriel comes to her, she is reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah, chapter 7 verse 14, where the prophet proclaims the sign that God will give: “The virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.”

Some of the traditional elements can be found in the painting: The lilies are a recognizable symbol of Mary’s purity. The intact glass pane next to the door typifies Mary’s perpetual virginity. And look closely: A dove, representing the Holy Spirit, rests on a nearby house—not presuming Mary’s response but awaiting it.

Filed Under: Annunciation, Art Tagged With: Annunciation, Art, Catholic, Mary 1 Comment

The Exaltation of the Cross

September 14, 2012 By Kathy Schiffer 3 Comments

On September 14, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Cross.

This picture, the Exaltation of the Cross, is taken from the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry (The Very Rich Hours of the Duke of Berry)—the most important illuminated manuscript of the 15^th century.

Dating back to around 1410 A.D., the richly decorated book contains prayers to be said at each of the canonical hours of the day. There are 416 pages in all, with 131 large miniatures as well as elaborately decorated borders and some 300 decorated capital letters. The book, which took nearly 100 years to complete, is now housed in the Musee Conde in Chantilly, France.

God our Father, in obedience to you your only Son accepted death on the Cross for the salvation of mankind. We acknowledge the mystery of the Cross on earth. May we receive the gift of redemption in heaven. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Filed Under: Art, Catholic, Prayer Tagged With: Art, Catholic, Exaltation of the Cross, Feasts, Illuminated Manuscript, Prayer 3 Comments

Two Mary’s! Giotto’s “Birth of the Virgin” Raises an Interesting Question

September 7, 2012 By Kathy Schiffer 8 Comments

September 8 is the Feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary– and I’ve got a question for you: WHY are there two babies in this picture?

This painting, titled “Birth of the Virgin,” is by the Renaissance artist Giotto di Bondone (better known simply as “Giotto.”) It’s one of a fresco cycle on the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Giotto’s work can be seen in the basilica at Assisi and in the campanile (bell tower) of the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (Basilica of St. Mary of the Flower) in Florence, Italy. It’s in Padua, though, where Giotti’s masterwork, the frescoes depicting the life of the Virgin and the life of Christ, can be seen. They’re in the Scrovegni Chapel (also called the Arena Chapel), which is built on a site where—for more than a generation—medieval Christians had held an annual open-air procession and reenactment of the Annunciation to the Virgin.

The Scrovegni Chapel was commissioned by a wealthy landowner, Enrico Scrovegni. Historians believe that Scrovegni, like his father before him, had once earned his living by usury (charging interest on loans), a sin so grave that the penalty for usury was excommunication, but that he had repented of his sin. Enrico’s father, Reginaldo degli Scrovegni, is the usurer encountered by Dante in the Seventh Circle of Hell. Enrico is believed to have built the chapel in penitence for the sins of his father and as restitution for his own sins. He is buried in the chapel’s apse, and is portrayed in his fresco of the Last Judgment—where he is presenting a model of the chapel to Mary.

But back to my question: Why TWO babies in swaddling clothes?

No, Mary was not a twin! Actually, both babies are depictions of Mary. It was unusual for Giotto to use this technique of painting the same person twice in a single painting; but it was not an unusual technique among artists of that era.

The first baby is Mary, wrapped in swaddling clothes, after having been bathed by attendants on the floor.

Then, after she has been washed, she—the second baby in the picture—is presented to her mother Ann who is lying in the bed.

On September 8—exactly nine months after the Feast of the Immaculate Conception—the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Birth of the Virgin Mary. If you’re wondering about Catholics’ understanding of the Immaculate Conception, check out that story here.