For the past two weeks, I have been able to travel around and see many different churches and statues that represent the Catholic religion. I stumbled upon a few that were either in Venice, Italy or Prague, Czech Republic. These pieces of artwork are created out of different forms of media, two are made from a painting while the other one is made from stone. These images are viewed and understood as somewhat holding out their arms in a way, whether it is holding a cross or nothing at all. It could either be used as a welcoming figure or an image of what seems as them “giving up”. I have seen that the main color in the church when representing Jesus or an important figure is mostly white. If they are not dressed in white, then they are dressed in red, blue, or sometimes green (mostly from a priest in this case). One of these images, Jesus seems to be wearing red. Although this may usually be seen as blood or him dying on the cross, he seems to almost be completely opposite of that in this image. It may almost represent fire and the Holy Spirit within him and the passion from himself to anybody that happens to be viewing the image.
To me, I believe that these images were created and put in place to grab the attention of anyone that was to enter or even look at the Catholic church. The two paintings (in Venice Italy) almost creates a feeling of guilt or sorrow and compassion towards Jesus. The very pale skin, the arms stretched out, and the people surrounding him, in my opinion, are there to show that he suffered for everyone around him and that going to church to worship him is what is needed. For the statue that is on the church (in Prague, Czech Republic), It is more of a welcoming symbol. Holding the cross with his arms stretched out seem like they created it to pull people in and show that it is a place to worship and love. Of course, this image does not have color because it is made of stone but the stone is very realistic but very traditional. This image may also not be Jesus, but a shepherd calling the people in. He is completely dressed and shows more of a conservative view compared to the other two pictures.
Combined, all three of these forms are made to represent that Jesus is there on the church and sending some sort of message. It is interesting to see the difference from the clothing, colors, and even the stance of how Jesus is standing. I believe this is to show two completely different messages from the church. There is also the fact that one is on the inside of the church, where people already understand what has happened to him, while the other is on the outside for more of a welcoming symbol. The painting are also in a completely different country than the statue which may be a reason for conservatism and emphasis of detail. All three images certainly bring an audience and show that there is a reason for worship no matter where these images are placed. It is very interesting to continually see how churches and artists go about representing Jesus and other figures in the church to the rest of the people.
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