Born
and bred in Brooklyn, NY, Laura James is a
self-taught painter of Antiguan heritage. Ms.
James paints religious subjects and visual
dramatizations of Bible stories using
iconography found in Ethiopian Christian Art.
In 2000, Ms. James received a major commission
from Liturgy Training Publications to create 35
images for a new reading of the Book of the
Gospels, one of the most sacred books of the
church. The completed book has been praised for
it's multicultural approach, and for it's
beauty.
"I feel as though we're really expanding on
the Ethiopian iconic tradition," says Ms.
James about the book.
"I
was immediately brought to a sense of awe with
these representations of the biblical
beings," said Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Perry
of the Archdiocese of Chicago, who introduced
James as an exhibit of her work opened in
Catholic Theological Union last week. |
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| Published
in 2000 by Liturgy Training Publications, the
book of the Gospels that James illustrated
contains selected Gospel readings for Sundays,
solemnities, feasts and all ritual masses. It is
an elaborate volume with gilded pages, large
type and a ribbon marker. The cover features
reflective foil portraits of the four
evangelists: Matthew
depicted as an angel, Mark as a lion, Luke as an
ox and John as an eagle--who told Jesus' life
story. In
services at large parishes, such books often are
raised during processions and read aloud and
kissed during mass. |
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