Exclamations of “Wow!,” “Super!,” and “This is really neat!” resounded as the congregants of St. Ignatius Church, Baltimore, MD, filed into the parish’s Reeves Gallery after Sunday services.  Honoring the Future’s Climate Art and Action exhibition is on display in the gallery from June 25, 2017 until August 27, 2017. The exhibition, which is free and open to the public, features photographs of artwork by eight nationally recognized artists – Maya Lin, Gary Braasch, Nancy Cohen, Xavier Cortada, Lee Goodwin, Peter Handler, Alexis Rockman, and Eric Serritella – along with interpretative signage and educational material on “What You Can Do” to address climate change.

 

 

Historic St. Ignatius Church opened its doors in 1856 to serve a cross-section of the city’s population. The parish then was nearly equally divided between immigrants and native-born residents, collectively representing some of the city’s wealthiest and poorest residents. Today, St. Ignatius continues to reflect the city’s diversity, counting itself enriched by African-American, Filipino, Korean, Chinese, African, Latino, and white members.

St. Ignatius Church has interwoven its ministry with the arts since its inception: paintings by Constantino Brumidi, also known for his work in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol, grace the historic building’s walls. Today, the church sits in the midst of – and encourages parishioner interaction with – the city’s Cultural District, which includes the Walters Art Museum, Contemporary Museum, and several prestigious arts schools. The church’s Reese Gallery is home to a rotating roster of contemporary art exhibitions hosted by Artist and Resident Curator David Cunningham.

“We are delighted to partner with St. Ignatius and its diverse community,” said Honoring the Future Director Fran Dubrowski.  “The parish’s historic devotion to the arts and active social justice ministry make it an ideal venue to explore how faith-based institutions can contribute to innovative climate education, planning and action.”

The Reeves Gallery is open Saturdays from 11:45 am – 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm and Sundays 7:45 am – 12:00 noon. Arrangements to visit the gallery at other times may be made with the parish office by phone 410-727-3848 or by email: parish@st-ignatius.net.