Press Coverage of Presentation "100 YEARS of ART and HISTORY AT ST. MICHAEL CHURCH"

Attached below is the story that appeared in today's Atlantic City Press. This story is an excellent preview of the presentation by Dr. John Calabrese scheduled tomorrow Dec. 13 at 2:00 pm in St. Michael’s Church on “100 Years of Art and History at St. Michael’s Church”. The full online article and eight images are available at the address below. Plan to attend this special free talk and the first in a series sponsored by the St. Michael’s Church Preservation Society. The Art of St. Michael's Michael’s Roman Catholic Church in Atlantic City is filled with Italian Renaissance-style art. Hand-painted angels cover the ceiling. The church and its extensive art collection will be the focus of a discussion by Dr. John Calabrese — an artist and professor of art history at Texas Woman’s University — on Sunday at the church. The Art of St. Michael's Posted: Saturday, December 12, 2015 8:00 am The art of St. Michael's VINCENT JACKSON Staff Writer The Press of Atlantic City Dr. John Calabrese has visited many of the great museums and churches On Sunday, Calabrese travels all the way from Texas to his former hometown, Atlantic City, to speak about the art and history of one of the city's treasures, St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church Calabrese, an artist and professor of art history at Texas Woman's University, is actually a former altar boy at the church in the Ducktown neighborhood. As a young boy, Calabrese lived on Mississippi Avenue and attended St. Michael's Elementary School. His family lived close enough to the church that he could hear Masses from his living room during the summer. St. Michael's Church was built by Italian-Americans and opened in 1912. It is well known as the best example of Italian Renaissance art in southern New Jersey. "This building has a lot of Renaissance elements. The architecture comes first," Calabrese said. "Everything emphasizes the altar." The men who built the church were either trained by Italians or imported from Italy, Calabrese said. "Vertical columns inside the church, whoever built them, used prototypes of some kind, recycled Renaissance consciousness, an effort to keep true to the Italian Renaissance," Calabrese said. Calabrese earned his master's in fine arts in painting from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and his doctorate in comparative arts from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.In addition to the architecture, Calabrese also plans to talk about the irreplaceable stained glass windows, paintings on the walls and ceilings and marble statues inside the church."I will address the theme of being dedicated to St. Michael. It's basically about the historical aspects of the church. What's on the wall? What is it saying?" Calabrese said. The time period in which a church was built influences the architectural style that it exhibits, Calabrese said. For instance, St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, which opened in 1879, exhibits a neo-gothic style. Calabrese said St. Michael's and St. Nicholas of Tolentine Catholic Church, both part of St. Monica's Parish, are two of the most beautiful buildings in Atlantic City. "It's really a rich experience. We have to do something to keep this open. The architecture is a work of art and function," Calabrese said. Calabrese is the first speaker in a series sponsored by the St. Michael's Church Preservation Society designed to educate people on the cultural, historical, social and spiritual meaning of the church and its neighborhood. While weekly Masses have ended at St. Michael's, the church is being used regularly for weddings, funerals, baptisms and for one Mass a month, said Robert Venafro, coordinator of the St. Michael's Church Preservation Society. "There are no plans to close and/or sell St. Michael's Church," Venafro said. "Father Jon Thomas, the new pastor of St. Monica's Parish, as well as the Diocese of Camden has made this clear to the parishioners and the St. Michael's Church Preservation Society." The church is owned by the Diocese of Camden. Fr. Thomas is also working closely with the church preservation society to schedule open prayer time, the rosary and other events, Venafro said."The St. Michael's Preservation Society will not let the art leave the church. Our mission is to preserve the church and the artwork inside of it," Venafro said. The preservation society intends to raise money to take over the maintenance and all the costs of running St. Michael's, so that it will not cost the parish or the diocese anything to operate the church, Venafro said. "There are 70 cases around the country where officials have tried to close churches like St. Michael's. In all the cases, where there is a preservation society present, the Vatican in Rome has ruled in favor of the preservation society," Venafro said. Contact: 609-272-7202 VJackson@pressofac.com A program Sunday will explore the art treasures of the 1912 Atlantic City church, such as a group of hand-crafted stained glass windows, which each depict a different Bible story. © 2015 Press of Atlantic City. All rights reserved. SAVE ST MIKES Bob Venafro of Va talks about St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church that was founded in 1904, first in a makeshift storefront and then the church was opened in 1912 on Mississippi Avenue by a large group of Italian immigrants and with the help of Father John Quaremba, a native of Castle Grande, Italy Saturday, Aug 15, 2015. The 112-year-old landmark is in danger of being closed by the Diocese of Camden on Sept. 27. But the doors will not close before a group of 300+ parishioners and former members of the church put up a fight. Press of Atlantic City SAVE ST MIKES Bob Venafro of Va talks about St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church that was founded in 1904, first in a makeshift storefront and then the church was opened in 1912 on Mississippi Avenue by a large group of Italian immigrants and with the help of Father John Quaremba, a native of Castle Grande, Italy Saturday, Aug 15, 2015. The 112-year-old landmark is in danger of being closed by the Diocese of Camden on Sept. 27. But the doors will not close before a group of 300+ parishioners and former members of the church put up a fight. Press of Atlantic City • • SAVE ST MIKES Bob Venafro of Va talks about St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church that was founded in 1904, first in a makeshift storefront and then the church was opened in 1912 on Mississippi Avenue by a large group of Italian immigrants and with the help of Father John Quaremba, a native of Castle Grande, Italy Saturday, Aug 15, 2015. The 112-year-old landmark is in danger of being closed by the Diocese of Camden on Sept. 27. But the doors will not close before a group of 300+ parishioners and former members of the church put up a fight. Press of Atlantic City