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Santa Prassede |
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written
by minhan / 10.24.2005 |
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Assignment |
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Santa Prassede Church and St. Peter’s Basilica each left a paradoxical impression on me. Their exterior gives a different impression of what is really felt once inside. Santa Prassede’s simple entrance lead me to believe that the interior would be very quaint and also very simple, a place with no outside distractions. The faint signs of a worn out mosaic were unnoticeable against the sea of gray stonewall. The two stairs leading down to the entrance was like a pathway in a mini pilgrimage getting me ready for an inside area of silence and contemplation. However, to my surprise, the interior was covered with intricate mosaics. These designs were up close and seemed to surround me completely because of the small place. As a result, I was more distracted by the artwork itself rather than the message the artwork was trying to portray. The interior was more of a show of distracting images than the simple plain area of devotion I first expected.
St. Peter’s Basilica exterior screams glamour, power, and grandeur. Its pathway gets me ready for a huge intimidating open area that makes me seem very small. The center aisle does portray the preconceived image but after standing for some time the open area allows me to more easily remove myself from the distracting miniscule details of the artwork to see other unnoticed things such as this elderly couple kneeling down slowly with a very unexplainable facial expression. Their face seemed to show a pained, anguish yet also happy expression. So this is what devotion looks like, an exhausting experience as a spiritual connection with a higher being is made and faith is confirmed. In turn it was the grandeur in size that actually allowed me to look past the vibrant decorations to see the strong devotion that this place entailed on many that entered.
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