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Views from the Choir Loft

Do You Like This Painting or Not?

Gwyneth Holston · January 27, 2014


GWYN_John Chrysostom Jean Paul Laurens, “St John Chrysostom and the Empress Eudoxia”


HE PAINTING BY Jean Paul Laurens (1838 – 1921) St John Chrysostom and the Empress Eudoxia has always intrigued me, but I can’t tell whether or not I really admire it. On one hand, its golden glow is terribly attractive. The empress is as lovely as a statue in her niche. I especially like the juxtaposition of St. John Chrysostom’s white robe against the pulpit and his tensed fingers silhouetted against the background. I also like the sense of space that can be glimpsed just behind the Empress.

On the other hand, the overall geometry of the painting consists of a rather strange dialogue between a semicircle and a triangle. Does it composition really convey they meaning of the event? I find it worrisome that Saint John Chrysostom comes off as somewhat hysterical and the empress poised in comparison.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Gwyneth Holston

Gwyneth Holston is a sacred artist who works to provide and promote good quality Catholic art. Her website is gwynethholston.com. Read more.

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Quick Thoughts

    Simplified Antiphons • “Candlemas”
    Anyone who desires simplified antiphons (“psalm tone versions”) for 2 February, the Feast of the Purification—which is also known as “Candlemas” or the Feast of the Presentation—may freely download them. The texts of the antiphons are quite beautiful.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
    Once, after Mass, my pastor said he really loved the hymn we did. I said: “Father, that's Holy God, We Praise Thy Name—you never heard it before?” He replied: “But the way you did it was terrific. For once, it didn't sound like a funeral dirge!” Last Sunday, our volunteer choir sang that hymn. I think the tempo was just about right … but what do you think?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Don’t You Agree About These?
    If you want to make Jeff Ostrowski really happy, send him an email with effusive praise about the individual voice recordings for hymn #296. [Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass] They came out dazzlingly sensational, don't you agree?
    —Jeff Ostrowski

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“The Chasuble, or upper garment, represents the purple garment which the soldiers put upon Jesus Christ, and the heavy cross that He carried on His blessed shoulders to Mount Calvary.”

— Guide for the Laity (1875)

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