Madonna of Compassion
The commission was to create a life-size, bronze, modern Madonna of Compassion to be installed in an oval atrium outside the chapel doors. The sculpture was to be viewed from all four directions: a long hallway in one direction, an exterior entrance, the doors to the administrative offices, and the chapel doors behind the sculpture. Therefore, there would be no front or back–all sides needed to work compositionally in the round and be equally interesting. The baby Jesus could be seen from all four sides. Also, the the theme would be the love and compassion between Mary and Jesus and their interaction with each other.
Mark Joseph Costello was the liturgical consultant, and Dougal Hewitt was the Vice President of Mission at Bon Secours Health System overseeing the Chapel Remodel Project for St. Mary's Hospital in Richmond Virginia. The model for the project was approved in 2009, but when the economy crashed, the hospital wisely decided to put the project on hold in order to focus on helping those most vulnerable. Two years ago the hospital was ready for me to sculpt the life-size Madonna of Compassion
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