By Tom Tracy - Florida Catholic
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO | Vatican Splendors exhibit
This 16th century painting of The Holy Family with Two Angels is part of the 200-item collection displayed in the "Vatican Splendors" exhibit.
FORT LAUDERDALE — For at least the third time in the last decade or so, South Floridians won’t have to travel far to view one of the great Vatican-sponsored exhibitions of religious art.
The Archdiocese of Miami is the final U.S. destination for “Vatican Splendors: A Journey Through Faith and Art,” which is being called one of the largest collections of Vatican art and historical items ever shown in the United States.
Set to open Jan. 29 and continue through April 24 at the Museum of Art in downtown Fort Lauderdale, Vatican Splendors comes on the heels of the two other successful Vatican programs: “Saint Peter and the Vatican: The Legacy of the Popes,” also shown in Fort Lauderdale in 2003, and 1998’s “The Invisible Made Visible: Angels from the Vatican,” which was displayed at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach.
Vatican Splendors has already been seen in St. Louis, Mo., and Pittsburg, Penn. It offers spectacular paintings by Giotto and Il Guercino and sculpture by Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini, along with unique objects illustrating the Catholic Church’s impact on history and culture.
The exhibition’s more than 200 objects, many of which have never been on public view, are presented in the museum’s galleries and in specially-created environments that enhance the understanding of the historical and artistic significance of each work.
NEVER SEEN
“Even if you went to Rome you would not see this,” said Mark Greenberg, president of the Texas-based Evergreen Exhibitions which is producing the Splendors three-city tour.
Greenberg noted that many of the items are not on public display in Rome, including a Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (Guercino) Renaissance painting just recently given to the Vatican and placed immediately into the tour.
The 16th century painting, “Portrait of Christ with Crown of Thorns (The Veronica of Guercino)” is, according to Greenberg, perhaps the first modern depiction of Christ as we generally see him depicted today.
“It might have been the foundation for that imagery of how Jesus is depicted,” he said. “We also have a reliquary that contains the bones of St. Peter, St. Paul and other saints. That is another piece that has never been outside the Vatican, and was in a private chapel, not in a public (one).”
Greenberg recommends that visitors spend between 90 minutes and three hours in the exhibit, and purchase the audio guides, available in English and Spanish, for a nominal fee.
“It is a wonderful opportunity for Catholics and non-Catholics alike to discover and learn more about the Vatican, the popes, and how art, culture, and religion have had such a significant role not only in the development of the papacy but also civilization itself,” said Msgr. Terence Hogan, rector of St. Mary Cathedral and North American chaplain of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums.
He said the exhibit includes “a vast collection of art, documents and historically significant objects from the Vatican,” including papal jewelry, liturgical papal vestments and even armor, swords and uniforms of the famous Papal Swiss Guards.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO | Vatican Splendors exhibit
Visitors to "Vatican Splendors" will be able to "shake hands" with Pope John Paul II.
1,700 YEARS
One of the consultants to the Vatican exhibit, La Sallian Brother Charles Hilken of St. Mary’s College of California, told The Florida Catholic that visitors should give themselves ample time to tour the show.
“There is much detail to what you are going to see as well as helpful texts and an audio guide,” he said. “The exhibit tells the story of nearly 1700 years of cooperation between artists and the Catholic Church in Rome. It is an interesting journey that mirrors the development of Western art itself.”
Brother Hilken said he worked closely with Evergreen Exhibitions as a member of the design team and consultant in questions of how to interpret the objects and understand their historical and religious importance.
Unlike previous Vatican exhibits in Florida, this show puts a spotlight on artists such as Michelangelo and their faith-inspired process — at a time perhaps when modern art often seems highly secular and moving away from Judeo-Christian theology or religion.
Brother Hilken points out that Christianity is a religion that celebrates humanity as the “summit of the created world.”
“Art, which depicts the beauty we perceive with our senses, becomes an aid to both public worship and private devotion. It is no wonder, then, that Christian artists have sought to use all their talents at shaping their various media to make, borrowing a phrase from Blessed Mother Teresa, ‘something beautiful for God,’” he said.
MICHELANGELO
Michelangelo and a small circle of artists including Raphael and Da Vinci are often celebrated as the greatest artists of the Renaissance. Michelangelo stands out among his peers as a deeply spiritual man with a fine grasp of his faith, Brother Hilken said, noting that Splendors celebrates Michelangelo with both a full-sized replica of the Pieta and a scaled-down experience of the making of the Sistine Chapel.
Michelangelo also will be celebrated in the exhibit for his contribution to the design of the new St. Peter’s Basilica, particularly of the dome over the tomb of the Apostle Peter which has become so emblematic of the Vatican and the papacy.
“The exhibit highlights aspects of his work as master architect for the Vatican, a post that he held for the last 18 years of his life,” Brother Hilken said. “I would want people to take away from the exhibit an impression of the personal faith that motivated individual artists throughout the centuries.”
The Splendors exhibit will feature an array of special events, including a related speakers’ series sponsored by the Museum of Art and Nova Southeastern University. WPLG-Channel 10 also will air an hour-long special on Splendors on Friday, Jan. 28 at 8 p.m.
An educator’s activity guide is available, with activities relating to social studies, mathematics, geography, history and other subject matter. A separate religious education guide designed for children in grades 4 to 12 and adults is also available. The lesson plans provided in this resource are for use in parish religious education programs and religion classes in Catholic schools. There is also a lesson for adults, which can be used in parish sessions, teacher in-services, small faith communities and numerous other settings.
Interfaith and ecumenical events are also anticipated, and a Vatican-sponsored gift shop concludes the experience.
MEANT FOR ALL
The museum’s location is ideally situated to attract not only South Florida Catholics but all lovers of art, history and culture.
“We are fortunate in Fort Lauderdale to be in the center of a population of six million people even before the winter season, and of a supportive archdiocese,” said Irving Lippman, director of the Museum of Art.
The facility, he said, is large and flexible enough to handle the Splendor’s displays, provide security and allow ample parking (there is a public parking garage across the street).
“When we had the King Tut exhibit we had 6,300 visitors a day,” Lippman said. “It proved this museum can attract a very broad exhibition.”
“Splendors is one of those rare opportunities — even if one has gone to the Vatican to see the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica, here we are able to put great works of art (some never seen publicly or outside of the Vatican) in another context and with a theme that is important: understanding faith and the creation of art,” he said. “How are artists inspired to create art that deals with religion?”
Holy Cross Hospital in Fort Lauderdale is one of the presenting sponsors for Vatican Splendors. Patrick Taylor, president and chief executive officer of Holy Cross, noted that the vitality and strength of a community “can be judged by the richness of its offerings in education and the arts.”
“We are honored to be able to support those enriching efforts by bringing these historic and valuable artifacts from the Vatican to South Florida,” Taylor said.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO | Vatican Splendors exhibit
This reliquiary with fragments of the bones of Sts. Peter and Paul will be on display at the "Vatican Splendors" exhibit which will open at the Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale Jan. 29.
