It reminds me of the stage sets of its time, I can just imagine the dancer Nureyev leaping around beneath it.
A thought has occurred to me. The Paul VI hall is for general audiences. The splendours of the Vatican are reserved for the worship of God. Could it not be that the backdrop to the hall could somehow represent the secular/modernist demons that the Pope has to fight? He certainly looks small and vulnerable beneath it. He certainly looks like a voice crying in the wilderness.
The hall for general audiences is not the place for triumphalism and beauty. I do however think a similar effect could be achieved with something far less ghastly.
Have you ever been there in person? From photos, you are getting the impression that the Christ is oversized. But the hall is so huge that the image is quite proportional and very impressive at the place.
I'd suggest it's not just the statue (if that's the word for it) that needs to go:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/25f2cf
It reminds me of the stage sets of its time, I can just imagine the dancer Nureyev leaping around beneath it.
ReplyDeleteA thought has occurred to me. The Paul VI hall is for general audiences. The splendours of the Vatican are reserved for the worship of God. Could it not be that the backdrop to the hall could somehow represent the secular/modernist demons that the Pope has to fight? He certainly looks small and vulnerable beneath it. He certainly looks like a voice crying in the wilderness.
The hall for general audiences is not the place for triumphalism and beauty. I do however think a similar effect could be achieved with something far less ghastly.
Ah... ghastly. That was the word I was looking for. Thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever been there in person? From photos, you are getting the impression that the Christ is oversized. But the hall is so huge that the image is quite proportional and very impressive at the place.
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous. Thanks for commening. I would just like to say that as a general rule, I think big is better, so I have no issue with the size.
ReplyDeleteIt's the design that we find ghastly.