Sacred Art Installation By Celebrated American Artist Guillermo Esparza Unveils at St. Patrick"s Old Cathedral in New York As Part Of Continuing Events Celebrating The Cathedral"s 200-Year Anniversary

New York, New York (PRWEB) October 24, 2009

Sacred art installation of mural and table for the shrine of “Our Lady of Lujan” by the celebrated American artist Guillermo Esparza unveils at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in New York on September 27, 2009 as part of the continuing events celebrating the Cathedral’s 200-year anniversary. The mural and table for the shrine of “Our Lady of Lujan”, commissioned by Rev. Carlos Mullins and the Argentinean-American Association of Our Lady of Lujan, becomes permanent installation at the Cathedral. The mural of “Our Lady of Lujan” by Guillermo Esparza was executed in oil and gold on linen. It depicts the miracle of Our Lady of Lujan, which took place in 1630 in Argentina. Guillermo Esparza, a master iconographer, sculptor, and painter, is renowned for his sacred art installations in the United States, as well as abroad. The carpentry for the table, following the design by Guillermo Esparza, was executed by Jeff Taisey, known for his work for numerous major motion pictures. The shrine was blessed by the Cathedral’s pastor, Msgr. Donald Sakano.

Another important sacred art installation by Guillermo Esparza unveils on October 15, 2009 at the Holy Name Chapel, St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral. As an addition to the on-going sacred art exhibit, “Arcanum Angelorum” (Mystery of the Angels), Guillermo Esparza’s latest mural icon is “The Deisis”. It depicts Pantokrator (Christ), Theotokos (Virgin Mary), and Prodromos (John The Forerunner). The Deisis is the central part of some Orthodox churches. This mural was executed by Guillermo Esparza in oil and gold on linen, and is 10 feet high and 7 feet wide.

Due to an extraordinary popularity of the event, an exhibit of sacred art – “Arcanum Angelorum” (“Mystery of the Angels”), Art in the Sacred Canon, – with works by Guillermo Esparza, award-winning, internationally recognized American iconographer, painter, and sculptor, is extended through the end of 2010 at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in New York. The exhibit commemorates the Bicentennial Celebration of the Cathedral located in the historic SoHo neighborhood in New York City and the restoration of the tabernacle of the church by the artist-in-residence, Guillermo Esparza. The exhibition features recent paintings of angels in oil, icons in egg tempera and gold, drawings, as well as sculptures and mural designs. The exhibit takes place in the undercroft of the Old Cathedral in the Holy Name Chapel, opposite 263 Mulberry Street. Guillermo Esparza launches his sacred art lecture series on iconography and on “Our Lady of Perpetual Help” icon at the Cathedral. Guillermo Esparza is honored for his work by New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, and receives Proclamation from the Mayor, honoring his current sacred art exhibit, “Arcanum Angelorum”.

Guillermo Esparza is the subject of the documentary by Los Angeles filmmaker Veronica Aberham for Studio-Online, an affiliate of London-based Studio International. Original soundtrack is composed and performed by Esparza’s wife, composer and pianist Maria Andriasova Esparza. The film is released on June 1st, and premiers on June 7th, 2009 at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral for its 200-year anniversary, following the historic mass delivered by Archbishop of New York Timothy Michael Dolan. Russian-language version of the film is translated by Columbia University-trained scholar, Olga Zvenyatsky. Moscow P. I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory and The Juilliard School graduate, composer Maria Andriasova Esparza, is nominated for the distinguished international “Mozart” award from the International Biographical Center, Cambridge, UK, for her original music to this documentary. The soundtrack is listed on Top-40 / Sony Masterworks.

Guillermo Esparza (http://www.guillermoesparza.com), the Artist-in-Residence at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in New York, is an award winning internationally recognized American iconographer, painter and sculptor with collections at the US national archives, the Phanar in Istanbul, Turkey, the Vatican Museum in Rome, Italy, Smithsonian American Art Museum, as well as numerous cathedrals, churches, museums, public art collection, and private collections internationally. An ecumenicist, Mr. Esparza has been awarded important commissions by churches of many denominations, and his original works are installed in Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Byzantine Catholic, and Orthodox Churches. A visionary in the world of public art in the US, Mr. Esparza is the first recipient of the “Percent-For-Art” public commission from the State of Arizona in 1986, thus opening the door to the next generation of artists competing for public commissions. Guillermo Esparza has been honored for his work by His All Holiness Bartholomew I, His Holiness the late Pope John Paul II, New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, among others. Mr. Esparza’s family built churches and cathedrals in Mexico. His paternal grandfather, Don Manuel Esparza, was a prominent US landowner and businessman, whose family held Spanish land grants in Mexico since the 17th century. Mr. Esparza’s maternal grandfather, the noted architect and engineer Don Benito Hernandez y Quiroz, was instrumental in bringing electricity to Guatemala. Guillermo Esparza is married to American concert pianist, film composer, and producer Maria Andriasova Esparza (http://www.andriasovaesparza.com), daughter of the legendary Russian composer Iosif Andriasov. Maria and Guillermo Esparza live and work in Manhattan.

For further information, please visit:

http://www.guillermoesparza.com

http://www.andriasovaesparza.com

ADDRESS:

St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral

Holy Name Chapel, opposite 263 Mulberry Street, New York, NY, 10012

Please note: The exhibit takes place in the undercroft of the Old Cathedral

CURRENT EXHIBITION TITLE:

“Arcanum Angelorum”(Mystery of the Angels) by Guillermo Esparza

Art in the Sacred Canon at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral located in historic SoHo neighborhood in New York City

EXHIBITION HOURS:

The chapel is open daily for services at 9 am and 12:10 pm, except for occasions for major feasts or First Fridays.

For exhibition hours, please contact the Cathedral’s office at (212) 226-8075

RECEPTION WITH THE ARTIST:

Sunday, October 25, 2009

2 pm

Holy Name Chapel, opposite 263 Mulberry Street, New York, NY, 10012

Please note: The exhibit takes place in the undercroft of the Old Cathedral

ARTWORK EXHIBITED, PLEASE CONTACT THE ARTIST GUILLERMO ESPARZA AT:

347-419-6585 cell

PRESS INQUIRIES:

Dame Larissa van Duser

646-489-1242

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Sacred Art Installation By Celebrated American Artist Guillermo Esparza Unveils at St. Patrick"s Old Cathedral in New York As Part Of Continuing Events Celebrating The Cathedral"s 200-Year Anniversary

The Church of St. Paul the Apostle, Lincoln Center in NYC, to Present "Arcanum Angelorum" ("Mystery Of The Angels") Exhibit by American Artist Guillermo Esparza with Live Performance by Composer Maria Andriasova Esparza

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 07, 2012

An exhibit of sacred art – “Arcanum Angelorum” (Mystery of the Angels) – with works by Guillermo Esparza, award-winning, internationally recognized American iconographer, painter, and sculptor, will be displayed in The Church of St. Paul The Apostle, Lincoln Center in New York City, Rev. Gilbert Martinez, CSP, Pastor. The opening reception is on Thursday, May 10th from 7 to 9 pm, with live performance by composer Maria Andriasova Esparza at the piano, and the show runs through June 7, 2012. The exhibit is presented by Openings NY, a project of the Paulist Fathers established by Rev. Frank Sabatte, CSP, and will feature Esparzas most recent monumental mural painting of the Many-Eyed (Red) Seraph, a part of the triptych of mural of The Pantokrator and accompanying Green and Red Seraphim, as well as podlennik of the mural of The Pantokrator with tetramorphs of the Evangelists and Archangels Gabriel and Michael. It runs in conjunction with Guillermo Esparzas on-going exhibit at The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral, where he is the artist-in-residence, and it runs through 2016 in celebrations of the Cathedrals 200-year anniversary. Composer Maria Andriasova Esparza will be making live appearance performing her award-winning score to a documentary film Guillermo Esparza, An American Iconographer, an original production by Los Angeles film maker Veronica Aberham for London-based Studio International.

According to early Christian history, the tradition of iconography was established approximately 1,000 years before the Renaissance. It is based on golden-mean proportions and related geometry, Byzantine modules, exact anatomy, inverse perspective, and multi-perspective philosophy. In my works, I strive to preserve the traditions of the medieval painters. What inspires me is light penetrating the transparent colors of egg tempera, reflecting back from the gesso ground. In sculpture, it is the super emanating light coming from white marble, reflecting the heart of the shellfish: fiat lux. Guillermo Esparza.

Many-Eyed (Red) Six-Winged Seraph, part of the triptych of mural of The Pantokrator, The Deisis and accompanying Green and Red Six-Winged Seraphim

By Guillermo Esparza

Oil and 24-k gold on Belgian linen

5 ft by 8 ft

2012

The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral

Collection of Maria Andriasova and Guillermo Esparza

Guillermo Esparzas monumental mural painting of the Many-Eyed (Red) Six-Winged Seraph, 5 ft by 8 ft, is a part of the triptych of mural of The Pantokrator, The Deisis, and accompanying Green and Red Six-Winged Seraphim. The mural of The Pantokrator and its accompanying Green Six-Winged Seraph are presently installed at The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral, where Esparza is the artist-in-residence. The installation of the Many-Eyed (Red) Six-Winged Seraph at The Church of St. Paul The Apostle runs in conjunction with Guillermo Esparzas on-going exhibit Arcanum Angelorum (Mystery of the Angels) at The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral, where Esparzas exhibit runs through 2016 in celebrations of the Cathedrals 200-year anniversary, and are on loan from Maria Andriasova and Guillermo Esparzas private collection. The mural Icon of the Pantokrator, the Deisis, depicts Christ in His Majesty (Majestas Domini). The figure to the left of Christ is John the Baptist, Prodromos, the Fore-Runner. The figure to the right of Christ is the Virgin, Theotokos, Mother of God. The Deisis means prayer, or supplication. The blessing of the mural Icon of The Pantokrator and the Green Six-Winged Seraph was celebrated by Msgr. Donald Sakano, The Basilica’s presiding pastor in 2010.

Podlennik (original drawing) of the mural of The Pantokrator with Tetramorphs of the Evangelists and Archangels Gabriel and Michael

By Guillermo Esparza

Conte on mylar

15 ft by 20 ft

2001 2012

Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, New York

Part of the collection of the U.S. National Archives

Podlennik of the mural of The Pantokrator with tetramorphs of the Evangelists and Archangels Gabriel and Michael by Guillermo Esparza. Podlennik is the original drawing for Guillermo Esparzas Mural Icon of the Pantokrator, 15 foot by 20 foot painting in oil and 24 karat gold on Belgian linen, which is permanently installed 60 feet above the nave of the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, New York, and is a gift from the Very Rev. Robert V. Wilshire, who served for 20 years as Dean of the Cathedral, seat of the Long Island Episcopal Diocese. The Rt. Rev. James Cordone and The Rt. Rev. Orris G. Walker Jr., Bishop of Long Island, were also instrumental in having this project funded and realized.

Icon of the Virgin of the Passion, also known as Our Lady of Perpetual Help

By Guillermo Esparza

Egg tempera and 24-karat gold on panel

2008-2009

The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral, New York, New York

Private collection

Icon of the Ecumanicae

By Guillermo Esparza

Egg tempera and 24-karat gold on panel

2010

The Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral, New York, New York

Private collection

Ecumenical sculpture

By Guillermo Esparza

Silver, Bronze, Platinum

1995

Permanent collection, The Vatican Museum, Rome

Permanent collection, The Phanar, Istanbul, Turkey

Commissioned by Archbishop Iakovos, Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America, funded by the American Greek Orthodox community and a Catholic community of the US. His Eminence Archbishop Iakovos presented the silver sculptures to the representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, on his historic visit to the Vatican, presented the sculpture to His Holiness Pope John Paul II, and kept the other sculpture at the Phanar in Constantinople.

About Guillermo Esparza:

Guillermo Esparza is an award winning internationally recognized American iconographer, painter and sculptor with collections at the US national archives, the Phanar in Istanbul, Turkey, the Vatican Museum in Rome, Italy, Smithsonian American Art Museum, as well as numerous cathedrals, churches, museums, and private as well as public collections internationally. He is the artist-in-residence for the Basilica of St. Patricks Old Cathedral in Manhattan, New York.

Born in San Antonio, TX, and raised in San Francisco Bay area, Guillermo Esparza began his career as an environmental sculptor, creating public fountains and monuments in the Southwest. He came to New York in 1988 to learn the art of the Orthodox. After extensive study of scripture and sacred art, he spent many years in the restoration of churches and icons for the Byzantine Catholic Community. He studied iconography with Michael Joseph Dudick, Bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the U.S. branch of the Ruthenian Catholic Church.

An ecumenicist, Mr. Esparza has been awarded important commissions by churches of many denominations, and his original works are installed in Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Byzantine Catholic, and Greek Orthodox Churches. Mr. Esparzas murals for Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Byzantine Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches have had the great distinction of being declared Icons. A visionary in the world of public art in the US, Mr. Esparza is the first recipient of the Percent-For-Art public commission from the State of Arizona in 1986, thus opening the door to the next generation of artists competing for public commissions. Guillermo Esparza has been honored for his work by His All Holiness Bartholomew I, His Holiness the late Pope John Paul II, and New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, among others. Mr. Esparza

The Church of St. Paul the Apostle, Lincoln Center in NYC, to Present "Arcanum Angelorum" ("Mystery Of The Angels") Exhibit by American Artist Guillermo Esparza with Live Performance by Composer Maria Andriasova Esparza