Only just yesterday we featured a number of our contemporary vestment designers' approaches to the gothic revival and on the very same day the following appeared on Sacra Domus Aurea : a silk chasuble in the sixteenth century Neri cut complete with embroidered orphreys a…
The St. Philip Chasuble
Only just yesterday we featured a number of our contemporary vestment designers' approaches to the gothic revival and on the very same day the following appeared on Sacra Domus Aurea : a silk chasuble in the sixteenth century Neri cut complete with embroidered orphreys a…
Recent Gothic Revival Vestment Work of Note
Today I thought we would turn our attention to a few contemporary approaches to the gothic revival in the area of vestment design. To my mind, these represent some of the most successful and interesting approaches in recent memory insofar as they all reclaim some of the mor…
Before and After: St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Lambertville, New Jersey
Quite frequently our before and after series features significant architectural renovations. Other renovations don't require quite this level of intervention but do demonstrate the important of colour and decoration in the overall effect. The following, undertaken by wa…
Beautiful New Church Completed: St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish in Charlottesville, Virginia
More good news. St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish , the Dominican chapel under construction in Charlottesville, Virginia (Diocese of Richmond), has at long last been been completed after five years of anticipation. It was dedicated on Sept. 20 by Bishop Barry Knestout a…
Saint Teresa of Avila's Biretta: A Brief Introduction to the Iconography of St. Teresa of Avila as Doctrix Ecclesia
It might be shocking to some (in particular those outside of the Hispanic world) to come upon an image of St Teresa wearing the biretta, which generally considered an exclusive item of clerical vesture. We must nevertheless remember that the biretta is the common ancestor o…
Vatican II Peritus Monsignor R.G. Bandas on Dogmatic Principles and Sacred Art
Monsignor Rudolph G. Bandas (1896-1969) was one of the great ones, a loyal and orthodox American theologian who attended every session of Vatican Council II as a peritus (expert). He was a member of two commissions during the Council, one on dogma and the other on seminari…
Distinctive Shades of Liturgical Colours in Eighteenth Century Vestment Work
Arguably the tastes of the later 19th and 20th centuries combined with the industrialized, catalogued religious goods industry and its novel notion of "ecclesiastical fabrics" contributed (as I have argued before) to a flattening of our perception of liturgical co…
Four Cardinals, Four Violet Chasubles of the Eighteenth Century
It has been a little while since we last checked in on some historical vestment work so for today I thought it might be of interest to look at four different chasubles, each coming from the eighteenth century, each bearing the arms of a cardinal, and each of a different cha…
St. Joseph's Seminary in North Carolina
Perhaps the most exciting building project of the year award goes to St. Joseph's College Seminary in the Diocese of Charlotte. They have done a terrific job. Hearty congratulations to the diocese and many thanks to everyone who dreamed big and worked hard to make this…
Simplicity Without Iconoclasm: Duncan Stroik Considers the Unintended Repercussions of a Classic of the Liturgical Movement
In the following piece, originally published in the 2013 issue of Sacred Architecture , architect Duncan Stroik consider the merits -- as well the unintended (and arguably undesirable) implications of Geoffrey Webb's work, The Liturgical Altar. It's a work I myself f…
The Renovation of the Chapel of a Carmelite Monastery in Michigan
A little known Carmel of Discalced Carmelites in Traverse City, Michigan (Diocese of Gaylord) is garnering attention among traditional Catholics and young women discerning. It has an interesting history -- it was founded by nuns who came originally from Mexico, fleeing per…
Before and After (and Before): Santa Maria in Cosmedin
Many of our readers may not be aware that the minor Roman basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, as it is seen today, was not how it looked for the period of about 200 years -- most of the 18th and 19th centuries. Like so many churches of Rome, the original church facade und…
Maria Hilf Chapel at Church of St. Agnes (Ecclesia Sanctae Agnetis)
The church of St. Agnes in St. Paul, Minnesota is an outstanding parish with the most impressive sacred music program I have seen anywhere in North America. It is also one of the most beautiful churches in the United States and the most significant of south German baroque …
Some Recent Contemporary Vestment Work
I thought we should check in with some of our bespoke vestment designers and share some of their recent work. We begin with Sacra Domus Aurea who recently shared this beautiful violet cope. The cope includes beautiful plum coloured velvet inserts with a rich violet and gold …
Catholic Architect Erik Bootsma of TAC & Notre-Dame Offers Online Course on Classical Architecture
During my studium days in Rome I had the opportunity to meet a great many talented young up-and-coming classical architects of the Catholic world. One of my favorites is Erik Bootsma , a convert to the Catholic Faith who studied in Rome as a Notre-Dame graduate student. Er…
A Carved Lindenwood Rood - European Craftsmanship Destined For Texas
The German litugical art firm, ALBL Oberammergau and, American firm, Gardiner-Hall Associates , have collaborated on a project destined for the new St. Philip's Catholic Church in Lewisville, Texas. Gardiner Hall was chosen by the Diocese of Fort Worth, Texas and the pas…
New Eucharistic Adoration Chapel at St. Catharine's Church in Columbus, Ohio
We were recently contacted about the completion of a new Eucharistic Adoration Chapel at St. Catharine Church in Columbus, Ohio. The chapel includes an altar, tabernacle with throne, ambo and Stations of the Cross. In addition, eight stained glass windows depicting saints …
The Rose Coloured Vesture of Cardinals for Laetare and Gaudete Sundays
There was a time not so very long ago when rose vestments were a relative rarity -- being worn on only two occasions of the liturgical year, Gaudete and Laetare. In recent years, as the liturgical minimalism of the 20th century has been gradually erased, this has became not…
Black or White? Two Design Ideas
Many of our readers will know that black has been the traditional colour of the Requiem Mass for a very long time. In the usus antiquior this matter is quite simple as it remains the proper liturgical colour of Masses for the Dead (with the exception of infants of course wh…
A (Pre-55) All Hallows Eve Devotional Booklet from Ancilla Press
It sometimes comes as a surprise to Catholics -- especially (if not also ironically) of those who tend to be of a more traditional bent -- that what we call "Halloween" was an official liturgical vigil of the Church. As such, it has had its own proper Office and M…
Recovering the Traditions of the Requiem: Crosses and Candlesticks
Matters are seldom resolved overnight but are rather a progression of steps. This is as true in liturgical life as it is in life itself. Many years ago when the traditions of the Requiem Mass were yet being rediscovered, the use of unbleached beeswax candles were a relative…
A New Altar for the Oxford Oratory
We were recently sent an email from one of the Brothers of the Oxford Oratory , informing us of the commission and execution of a new altar in the aforesaid oratory church. The Oxford Oratory is, of course, one of the premiere venues of Catholic Oxford, and as such any news …
Book Notices: Cardinal Schuster's The Sacramentary (and Conciliar Limericks)
While our focus here is primarily the liturgical arts, these do not exist outside liturgical history and for that reason we wanted to inform our readers about the timely reprint of one the classics of liturgical history, Cardinal Ildefonso Schuster's The Sacramentary: H…
Memento Mori: Not For Vestments Alone
Most of our readers are more than familiar with the fact that many historical requiem Mass vestments included images of the dead on them as a form of memento mori . We also recently shared some funerary banners that included the same. In point of fact, the use of memento mor…
The Phoenix Cope from Watts and Co. of London
For more than a century, Watts & Co. of London have been known for their work within the context of the gothic revival. This is perfectly natural given that its founders include some of the premiere gothic revivalists of their time. Continuing on within this tradition, …
Book Review: Excellent New Paperback Hand Missal for the EF
The Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago along with our good friends at Biretta Books have published an exciting new Latin-English booklet missal for the lay faithful. It is called The Latin Mass Companion and includes the Order of Mass in Latin and English with P…
Three "Before and After" Projects of the Earlier Liturgical Movement
Generally our "before and after" series presents contemporary projects, but today I thought I would share three remodelling projects that come from the earlier period of the Liturgical Movement as featured in a 1934 issue of Liturgical Arts Quarterly . They actuall…
The Ongoing Evolution of North American Martyrs Parish in Edmonds, Washington
Over the past year, we have been checking in with Jasper and Scheer Liturgical Art , and their project of beautifying the North American Martyrs parish in Edmonds, Washington. We began with their altar in January of this year, and then turned back to the project later in Feb…
Home of the Extraordinary Form in Paris: Church of Saint-Eugène-Sainte-Cécile
My favorite church to visit in Paris for Sunday High Mass is the Église Saint-Eugène-Sainte-Cécile . Catholics who visit Paris should know about this wonderful church and visit -- it is the home of the EF in the Archdiocese of Paris. Liturgy is done very well here with grea…
In Tribute to Our Priestly Liturgical Scholars: Fr. William Ashley, STL of Canada
One of the finest priests I know is Fr. Bill Ashley of the Archdiocese of Vancouver. He is a noble son of the Church, born in the city named for the greatest of prophets (cf. Luke 7:28), St. John the Baptist, St. John's Newfoundland, the easternmost outpost of the Nort…
