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Hope
in God
Subject: Joan of Arc by Real de Sarte
Location: Saint Joan of Arc Church
Portrait: purchase options
Then:
"Hope in God. If you have good hope and faith in Him, you shall be delivered
from your enemies." Joan of Arc, April 1429 Now:
Outside the Sainte Jeanne d'Arc church is this touching effigy. It
portrays Joan of Arc's final moments at the burning stake... when she
again placed all of her hope in God. |
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Saint Joan of Arc Church
Subject:
Saint Joan of Arc Church
Location: Old Market Square
Portrait: available upon request
Then: Architect Louis Arretche honored the
tradition used in many old churches of giving the building the shape of an
upturned boat. The roof represents scales made of slate and copper. Inside,
the wooden structure is visible above the nave. The massive stained glass
windows date from the Renaissance (1520-1530) and were saved in 1944 from
the bombing of the nearby ancient Saint Vincent's church. The windows were
reset here. The church stands in what used to be the "Vieux-Marché",
or Old Market Square, of Joan's time where there were executions, public
humiliations and... a market. The medieval market tradition remains today
with two large covered market halls selling fish and meats and the like. Now:
The Old Market Square is an interesting juxtaposition of an ancient open
air market and a contemporary memorial preserving the location where
Joan of Arc was burnt at the stake and the foundation of Saint Sauveur's
church where Brother Isambert de la Pierre went to fetch the cross he
held out to Joan at the stake. The centerpiece is the church. The Sainte
Jeanne d'Arc Church is strikingly different from Gothic tradition. Its
non-cruciform design is invitingly compact and modest. Visitors are
welcome. If you look closely in the bottom-right of the picture, you can
see the statue featured in "Hope in God" and "Summoned By God". |
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Summoned
By God
Subject: Joan of Arc by Real de Sarte
Location: Saint Joan of Arc Church
Portrait: available upon request
Then: Witnesses attest that during the
last minutes of her life, Joan prayed unceasingly before her executioners,
asking for mercy on their souls, repeating that her
Voices were true and coming from God. When the flames reached her, she
called for Holy Water and then spoke her final words, "Jhesus, Jhesus!" Now:
The statue of Joan of Arc by Real de Sarte dates from 1926. It is backed
into an alcove created by the stone walls of the Church of Saint Joan of
Arc. Its vertical lines are flowing and passionate. The statue is
adorned with various seasonal flowers. On this visit, there were subtle
tulips at her feet, leaving the stone statue coolly framed in
undecorated stone. |
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Say
a Mass for Me
Subject: Joan of Arc
Location: Saint Joan of Arc Church
Portrait: purchase options
Then: Saint Joan of Arc was burnt alive in
the Old Market Square in Rouen, France on the morning of May 30, 1431,
pronounced a heretic, relapse and idolater. Her ashes were gathered and
thrown into the Seine River. According to witnesses present at her
execution, during the final moments of her life she saw several priests with
tears in their eyes. Turning to them she said, "All you priests who are
here, I beg you to say a Mass for me, every one of you." Now:
Inside the Saint Joan of Arc Church is this contemporary
dedication. The intelligent overhead lighting emphasizes its uniqueness,
while the traditional candelabrum artistically compliments the form. By
pulling away from the subject, I tried to capture all these elements.
The result is a poignant photograph of Joan of Arc that is somberly
uplifting. |
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Rouen
Streets
Subject: Ancient abbey
Location: Downtown
Portrait: available upon request
Then: Joan of Arc was captured by
Burgundian soldiers outside the city of Compiègne about six o'clock in the
evening on May 23, 1430. She was sold to the English for 10,000 francs and
taken to Rouen, a region loyal to the English. Now:
Tight stretches of ancient streets are still found in downtown Rouen
today. Although cities have integrated infrastructure over the years, it
is easy to visualize this street as Joan may have seen it over 500 years
ago. |
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The
Maid's Tower
Subject: Tour Jeanne d'Arc
Location: Site of Château de Philippe Auguste
Portrait: available upon request
Then: It was in one of the towers, later
named the Maid's Tower, of the old Bouvreuil castle that Joan of Arc was
imprisoned at the end of 1430. The tower had three floors. Joan was kept on
the middle floor, which consisted of one single room the diameter of which
was forty-three paces. She emerged from it only to go into the Saint-Romain
chapel where her trial began, or into the Parement chamber adjoining the
great hall where public interrogations were conducted. She was inside the
keep only once, on May 9th, 1431, when she was faced with instruments of
torture before being led to the cemetery of Saint-Oue for the abjuration
procedure. On May 30th, 1431 she left the castle on her way to her
execution. Now: The Joan of
Arc Tower museum is a little out of the way and much less visited than
other landmarks. It is actually a reconstruction on the spot where the
original tower existed as part of the Philippe Auguste Château where
Henry VI resided. You can certainly get a feel for Joan's imprisonment
as you follow the narrow spiral staircase to Joan's chamber. |
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Notre-Dame
Rouen
Subject: Notre-Dame Cathedral
Location: Rouen
Portrait: available upon request
Then: The Cathédrale
Notre-Dame is the largest in Rouen. It was started in the 12th century,
demolished by fire and eventually finished in the 16th century. It has been
made famous by Claude Monet's "Cathedral Series" paintings of the uneven
towers of the west façade where color is
emphasized over contour. The cast iron spire in this picture of the south
façade was added in 1876 and has been struck by lighting and rebuilt several
times. The cathedral itself was heavily damaged during World War II and
restorations have been going on for more than 50 years. Now:
The west façade of Cathédrale Notre-Dame of Rouen is
fantastically bold with its uneven towers and delicate tracery. However,
it is virtually impossible to photograph its entirety without distortion
because it is situated among tight city streets. So, I settled for this
photo of the south façade which is less dramatic. The open air market of
fresh fruits and vegetables under the red canopy was a treat. |
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Clear
Devastation
Subject: Central nave and clerestory
Location: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Rouen
Portrait: available upon request
Then: The central nave of the cathedral
boasts a rib vault ceiling reaching over 100 feet. Notice how the row of
windows below the ceiling is clear glass? The original stained glass was
destroyed during World War II and has never been replaced. Now:
I resisted the urge to make this photo a black and white. I could not
get past the atypical, yet beautiful rust color of the vaulted ceiling.
The color creates a "layered" feel to the photo as the pointed arches,
the windows of the clerestory and the
ribbed ceiling fade away from the upper-right to the lower-left of the
photograph. |
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Mother
Mary
Subject: Statue of Mother Mary and baby Jesus
Location: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Rouen
Portrait: purchase options
Then: Every Saturday, Joan of Arc's
devotion took her two miles from home to a chapel in Greux, dedicated to the
Mother Mary. "...she went often and of her own will to church and the sacred
places and often she was ashamed because of people remarking how she went so
devoutly to church." Régine Pernoud Now: Despite
the overwhelming gray light splashed across the walls of the cathedral,
this portrait of the Mother Mary and baby Jesus is cast in warm rusty
light with a cool bluish backdrop. It adorns one of many apsidal chapels
in the Cathédrale Notre-Dame of Rouen which is dedicated, of course, to
the Virgin Mother Mary. |
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Jesus
Maria
Subject: Joan of Arc altar
Location: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Rouen
Portrait: available upon request
Then:
"The sword was in the earth, all rusty, and there were upon it five crosses
and I knew it by my voices..." Joan of Arc Now:
Ironically, this portrait captures the cold and gray feel of the Rouen
cathedral with this statue of Joan of Arc burning at the stake.
Strangely, she looks cold upon the altar. Even more unusual is
her sword prominently displayed splitting the
names of Jesus and Mary. Indeed, an odd composition, this is how the
city that killed a saint elects to
portray her in their grandest cathedral. |
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