Monday, December 14, 2009

MY WORLD ~ St.Mary's Church

Driving through the Latrobe Valley in Victoria we stopped for
a respite and went into the cool peace of this church. My goodness,
were we ever surprised!


















Every inch of the interior, and it is a very big church, was covered
in frescos and gilding. The artist was no Michaelangelo but the effort
he had put in was enormous and the effect cohesive and awe inspiring.

















We were deeply touched by the story below, I hope you can
take the time to read it. All photos enlarge by clicking on them.

It is well worth reading, especially at this time of year. It tells
of hardhip and kindness shaking hands and leaving this momentous
legacy for, at that time, a quite small community. A real act of faith.
























The ceiling was totally covered in putti, angels and radiating
gilding gleaming like so many midday suns.

















The walls depicted the life of Christ and the Saints.


















I don't think that in this materialistic world a work like this is
likely to be repeated. Such selfless labour, for so little material
reward yet with a wealth of fellowship and kindnes that speaks
volumes and makes it an enduring treasure, is astonishing.

















Click on the Logo to see other parts of this world.

To the team of hosts for MY WORLD a big thank you for keeping this
meme running so smoothly .

35 comments:

  1. Ma'am Arija! What a great privilege to read your post and what a big heart Francesco Floreani had! His skills and craftsmanship indeed is no parallel and yes, I agree with the word cohesive ...attached to his very impressive talent.

    Australia and Melbourne has been fortunate to be served by him as a recipient of his artful contribution for this country.

    Thank you very much for this very appealing and interesting post!

    My world is in Quadrat

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wonderful post and beautiful pictures. You would not expect those paintings in a rather modern church.

    ReplyDelete
  3. That's the beautiful church and the art works are amazing, love the alter..

    Thanks for sharing, have a lovely week

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow, the art work is just amazing. It's hard to even conceive of the effort involved, and all done by one man.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a marvelous church and what a wonderful story! The art work is indeed amazing. Your photos are fantastic, as always, Arija! Thanks for sharing the beauty!

    Enjoy your week!

    Sylvia

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sorry, my mistake, they were murals not frescos, hard for me to change it since my formatting goes haywire if I have to edit the post.

    Bonnnie,
    thank you, Victoria was certainly blessed by having this indigent artist dropped on its shores.

    ReplyDelete
  7. the paintings are amazing! i also love how you shot the church's facade

    ReplyDelete
  8. Beautiful church and marvelous interiors.

    ReplyDelete
  9. is stunning work.To think of all the hours which have gone into this is beyond description.Thanks for sharing this art.
    Blessings,Ruth

    ReplyDelete
  10. What a lucky chance meeting of the priest and the artist.
    Beautiful labor of love.

    Now I go off to read up on putti. :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. What an amazing interior! Really wild - but lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  12. And he painted houses and fences to amazing Great post as usual

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a lovely story and what a labour of love Arija.

    ReplyDelete
  14. It just leaves one speechless at the beauty of all of the painting and artwork in the church.

    ReplyDelete
  15. What a nice surprise! Very beautiful...

    ReplyDelete
  16. Amazing! The humble brick exterior belies the treasures within! (True of all of us?)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Totally awesome Arija! I have to agree with you in that this kind of artistry can not be repeated in todays' world. There are fewer and fewer people learning such skills.
    These paintings are truely a treasure.
    B.

    ReplyDelete
  18. This is beautifu. I regret that we rarely see such artistry and craftsmanship going into buildings these days.

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a great story. The labor that went into it is amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  20. A beautiful and story Arija, Francesco Floreani was an amazing person. Thank you for this wonderful post.

    ReplyDelete
  21. What a beautiful church and what wonderful artwork.

    ReplyDelete
  22. A wonderful post Arija...thanks for showing us!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Thank goodness the priest gave him a chance - and what a way to repay it. A reminder that you shouldn't give up - I imagine at the point in the story where he met the priest he must've been pretty close to despair.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Wow...what amazing work! Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hello darling friend. No more raccoons? Are possums? Or are they the same thing.

    xoxox

    ReplyDelete
  26. Wow, what a find you made there.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Do you mean that yours aren't as good as ours?

    xoxoxox

    ReplyDelete
  28. The work that went into decorating this church is mind boggling! And I though this only existed in Europe. Australia is forever surprising me!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Beautiful And Fantastic Shots of Church !! This is great..Thanks for Sharing..

    ReplyDelete
  30. This is really impressive art works as well as the story about such amazing artist.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Oh my dear Arija, what a beautiful church. Any time I visit places like this one I feel my spirit expand to the whole space. A sense of the body disappearing...I am all mind...flying...


    xox

    Isabel

    ReplyDelete
  32. Dear Arija! Did you see the artist in his blue collar and handcuffs? I am covered with goosebumps. Ooh!

    ReplyDelete