I was honored to create several paintings for the Saint Louis Cathedral of the Capuchin Fathers in Lebanon. Sadly, the explosion that devastated Beirut on August 22, 2020, caused extensive damage to the cathedral, shattering its beautiful stained-glass windows and paintings.
As I walked through the debris, I knew I had to do something to help. I collected all the broken glass from the cathedral and decided to repurpose it into beautiful art pieces, so that the shattered remains could live on in a new and meaningful way. Using thousands of pieces of glass, I created stunning visual art such as the ‘Laudato Si'(pictures on the right) showing the eight canticles of St. Francis and the Tau cross, that is now proudly displayed and used by the cathedral.
In addition, I painted several more artworks for the cathedral, using my specialty in painting on glass to create something beautiful and unique. It is my hope that my work brings some comfort and healing to the cathedral and its community in the aftermath of such a tragic event.
The Saint Louis Cathedral of the Capuchin Fathers (French: Cathédrale Saint Louis des Pères Capucins) is a small Latin Catholic cathedral and convent in Beirut, Lebanon. It stands on the northern slope of the Serail Hill, adjacent to Bab Idris, one of Beirut’s seven historic city gates. The church was built by Capuchin missionaries in 1864, and named after King Louis IX of France who is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church. The church is well known for its towering campanile.
