The traditional arts often contain spiritual representations and symbols, the meanings of which can be lost to our modern minds. In our series “Reaching Within: What Traditional Art Offers the Heart,” we interpret visual arts in ways that may be morally insightful for us today. We do not assume to provide absolute answers to questions…
Courage for Salvation, Love, and Beauty: ‘Courage, Anxiety, and Despair: Watching the Battle’
January 18, 2021
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The Breathtaking Architecture of Sainte-Chapelle, Paris
If “breathtaking” were a building, it could very well be the Sainte-Chapelle (“Holy Chapel”) in Paris, the spectacular royal chapel adjoined to King Louis IX’s palace. The chapel was commissioned between 1242 and 1248 to house the Passion relics, including Christ’s Crown of Thorns, which King Louis IX purchased in 1239. The chapel is a perfect example of Rayonnant…
A Maritime Masterpiece: Old Royal Naval College at Greenwich
Greenwich Palace—the birthplace of the Tudor monarch King Henry VIII—once stood on the site where the Old Royal Naval College now stands in Greenwich, London. Known as “the father of the royal navy,” Henry made substantial investments in his fleets. Located beside the River Thames, the palace site was ideal for Henry to be close…
The Miracles of Faith: ‘The Martyrdom of Saint Christina’
I’m sometimes left wondering about this thing we call faith, a thing the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard celebrated as a paradox in which we, as individuals, have an absolute relationship with the Absolute, that is, God. There is power in faith, in the doubtless belief in something without the need for physical evidence. Those who do…
An Illuminating Calendar From ‘The Very Rich Hours of the Duke of Berry’
In the first half of the 15th century, Western Europe was at the tail end of the Hundred Years’ War, a series of conflicts between France and England to win the powerful kingdom of France. War and plague were rife. Turmoil, heartache, and despair were the mainstay for many medieval Europeans. No one was left…
The Story of Zhang Kunlun: From Tortured Chinese Prisoner to International Art Leader
Professor Zhang Kunlun is one of China’s most accomplished sculptors. As the recipient of many awards, Zhang was once the director of the Sculpture Institute of the Shandong Art Institute, as well as director of its Sculpture Research Institute. He also created some of China’s largest monuments. Yet at the peak of his career, the renowned…
Himeji Castle: Japan’s Finest Surviving Early 17th-Century Castle
Since 1333, a fort has stood on a hill summit in Himeji, in west Japan, where Himeji Castle now stands. The current castle was built between 1601 and 1609, and all previous structures were demolished. The early 17th-century castle is the finest surviving example of its kind. Primarily built of wood, the castle is also…
Heavenly Ascension: ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’
Around 1475, Italian Renaissance artist Francesco Botticini created a large painting titled “The Assumption of the Virgin.” The theme of the Virgin Mary ascending to heaven was common in Renaissance art. In the lower third of the painting, we see the 12 apostles of Jesus. They stand next to an open casket on a hill…
Taking You There: ‘The Mountain and the Valley’
On Christmas break during my last year of law school in 1970, I felt pretty good, with one semester to go before I might take on the world and become a practicing attorney. I borrowed my mother’s old gray Rambler and drove to the nearby Cherry Hill Mall in South Jersey for some last-minute shopping….
Behold the Beauty: Minute Treasures From European Grand Tours
Unique 18th- and 19th-century tourist treasures, many with a twist, are currently on display in the exhibition “A Return to the Grand Tour: Micromosaic Jewels From the Collection of Elizabeth Locke,” at the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston, South Carolina. Made from teeny-tiny pieces of colored glass, micromosaics make up the most amazing, almost…
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