The Christmas Canvas, a gift for Pope Francis
CHRISTMAS! Up goes the twinkling tree and on go the glistening lights. It’s the season for gifts and candy canes; for fruit cakes and carols. But beyond the bows and mistletoe in a tiny Manger lies the true magic of Christmas; of God born as man! This magic of Christmas for long has enchanted artists who have employed their flair to narrate the timeless story from the Annunciation to the Presentation.
This Christmas, the Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Mumbai, brings to you the story of Christ’ birth through twelve brilliant masterpieces. The twelve write-ups that form the ‘Christmas Canvas’ were first written by Miss Joynel Fernandes, Asst. Director of the Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Mumbai in 2017, as a mini-series for a blog site (www.pottypadre.com).
The presentation of these classical paintings coincides with the twelve days of Christmas, narrating to us the story of faith as captured by some of the most amazing artists of all times. The book was warmly launched by H.E. Oswald Cardinal Gracias, Archbishop of Bombay at Archbishops House, Colaba on December 3, 2018.
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THE CHRISTMAS CANVAS: ‘The Sistine Madonna’ by Raphael da Urbino (1513) O Maiden will you be, the Mother of the Saviour Your God has chosen you, to give the world…
THE CHRISTMAS CANVAS: ‘The Presentation at the Temple’ by Ambrogio Lorenzetti (1342) Ambrogio Lorenzetti (1290 – 1348) was a medieval Italian painter of the Sienese school of art. Inspired by…
THE CHRISTMAS CANVAS: ‘The Massacre of the Innocents’ by Peter Paul Rubens We are in the city of Antwerp in northern Belgium. It is a prosperous city of money, merchants…
THE CHRISTMAS CANVAS: ‘The Adoration of the Magi’ by Gentile da Fabriano (1423) From the magnificence of the Medici we move to the splendour of the Strozzi; both illustrious bankers…
Fr. Warner D'Souza is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Bombay. He has served in the parishes of St Michael's (Mahim), St Paul's (Dadar East), Our Lady of Mount Carmel, (Bandra), a ten year stint as priest-in-charge at St Jude Church (Malad East) and at present is the Parish Priest at St Stephen's Church (Cumballa Hill). He is also the Director of the Archdiocesan Heritage Museum and is the co-ordinator of the Committee for the Promotion and Preservation of the Artistic and Historic Patrimony of the Church.
