On Catholic Faith Communities Inspiring Catholic Art Work

"Joe Malham's studio is distinctive not only for what's inside it, but also its location - a former convent converted into a parish center. Malham, a professional iconographer, is a permanent artist in residence at St. Gregory the Great, a parish in the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago - perhaps the only such arrangement of its kind in the area.

"Since the fall of 2015, Malham has been painting a series of murals in the icon style that depict scenes from the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Another wall displays the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary that Malham has done with another artist. The murals are transforming what was once a large, unused space in the parish into the 'Chapel of Consolation.'

"The idea, Malham says, arose out of a tragedy: A parishioner's wife died while pregnant with twins. 'Her loss was transformed into a vision to create a chapel of healing and meditation for families of all faiths who have lost children. It is a tremendously powerful and important sacred space that is evolving; a sort of homegrown Sistine Chapel - and to our knowledge, there is nothing like this in the Archdiocese of Chicago, and we hazard the guess that there is nothing like it in the country,' Malham wrote in an email to the Register.

"Malham has done all the work at no charge to the parish. In return, the parish gives him studio space onsite. It's where Malham writes his icons and, most recently, wrote a book about the art and theology of icons. But Malham says St. Gregory's has given him much more than just material goods."

A recent National Catholic Register article reported on Saint Gregory's "Evangelization Through the Arts" initiative and the community support it has given to Mr. Malham and other artists, The article also reported on the effect of an art project at Xavier College Preparatory High School, Phoenix, AZ, on artist Ruth Stricklin.

To access the complete National Catholic Register report, please visit:

National Catholic Register: How Community Inspired Two Catholic Artists (25 MAR 17) 

Background information:

Saint Gregory the Great Parish, Chicago, IL

Trinity Icons, Chicago, IL

Xavier College Preparatory High School, Phoenix, AZ

New Jerusalem Studios, Phoenix, AZ