The Grammar of Erie's Sacred Buildings: How Local Places of Worship Speak to Us (And How We Speak Back)
The Grammar of Erie's Sacred Buildings: How Local Places of Worship Speak to Us (And How We Speak Back)
This illustrated lecture will offer participants tips for decoding the meaning of the religious buildings they encounter throughout the Erie area. The lecture will propose that there are "rules of grammar" at work in sacred architecture as predictable as those at work in any other language of communication. Among these are boundary-making, containment, elevation, and dematerialization, all of which participants will be taught to identify by way of local examples of the art form.
Location: Jefferson Educational Society - 3207 State Street, Erie, PA 16508
Date/Time: Tuesday, October 3 at 7:00 p.m.
Admission: $10/person or $15 with a guest
Parking: lot behind building, State Street, 33rd Street, 32nd Street, French Street
Michael E. DeSanctis, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus of Fine Arts and Theology at Gannon University, Erie, PA, a Catholic, diocesan institution. He is a four-time recipient of the Student Government Association “Excellence in Teaching” award and has been honored with the Bishop Donald W. Trautman “Feed My Sheep” award for his commitment to the University’s Catholic mission. Dr. DeSanctis is a member of the Commission on Sacred Art and Architecture for Diocese of Erie and has established an international reputation for his work as a liturgical educator, designer and consultant. In recent years, Dr. DeSanctis’ “avocation” as a designer-fabricator of original, three-dimensional depictions of the Nativity has gained him wide recognition. His projects were featured in the September 2016 and Summer 2020 issues of the newsletter of “Friends of the Crèche,” the national organization committed to preserving the art and history of crèche-building, of which he is a board member. He and his physician-wife, Kelli, are members of St. Jude the Apostle Church, Erie, PA, where they head up the OCIA/Adult Education initiative.
