When Father Louis Bellopede, the pastor of St Paul’s Church, in South Philadelphia was notified that his parish named after St Paul would become a pilgrimage destination, he shared with us his vision to create a replica of an Italian piazza as a place of inspiration and a focus for the community. St Jude Liturgical Arts Studio undertook a bold direction when we decided to base our design on the most famous Piazza of all, the Piazza San Pietro, which is in front of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Since it was not appropriate to build an exact replica, we focused on one of the main components of this well recognized space, that of the statues of Peter and Paul that frame the Basilica. Father agreed with our designers that bronze metal would be the best material to convey the devotion, integrity, and power of these 2 great saints. We called upon our bronze foundry in Italy to create 2 life size statues using the lost wax casting process. The result is a realistic traditional image of Peter and Paul that is reminiscent of the great expressive and inspirational art of the Renaissance.

The statues harmonize well with their environment in that the pedestals bases that they rest upon are made of the same brick and are in the same style as the facade of the Church.

What a great gift to the neighborhood and the entire the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as the Church throughout the world celebrates the year of St Paul in 2008-2009.