La Pietá on display at Salt Lake Newman Center

IC Photo/Laura V. Sausedo

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A full-size replica of La Pietá was unveiled March 25 at Saint Catherine of Siena Newman Center. Here Arron Miller, a St. Catherine parishioner, admires the replica of Michelangelo's masterpiece.

SALT LAKE CITY - A full-sized replica of Michelangelo's La Pietá is on exhibit at Saint Catherine of Siena Newman Center.

Last weekend it was unveiled and blessed by Dominican Father Carl Schlichte, pastor of St. Catherine.

"I am grateful to Steven Bishop for the chance to bring it here. Michelangelo's masterpiece is a somber contemplation of Jesus' humanity lying in death, held lovingly once again by His Blessed Mother," said Fr. Schlichte, who unveiled the sculpture with Steven Bishop.

Bishop is founder of Vescovo Buonarroti Art, LLC, which is sponsoring a nationwide tour of the replica.

The original is on display at Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.

"This is a ministry for me; I am so grateful for the opportunity that I have to be able to present this sculpture not only to you but to communities large or small from all over the world," said Bishop.

Each full-sized La Pietá replica is cast using a proprietary marble blend, the results of which are said to be faithful in both detail and subtlety to Michelangelo's original. After casting, it is hand-finished by master artisans, ensuring replication of the intricate details of the original, including the folds in Mary's garments, limp muscles in Jesus' body, and Michelangelo's signature on the sash that runs across Mary's body.

Vescovo was granted the exclusive worldwide license by the Vatican Observatory Foundation to create and distribute the official replica of Michelangelo's masterpiece.

"Having one of Vescovo Buonarroti's La Pietá with us for three months is a unique and wonderful opportunity," said Fr. Schlichte.

"The work depicts that moment on Good Friday when [Mary] lovingly gave that sacred body back to the Eternal Father," Fr. Schlichte said. "A parishioner and friend brought this beautiful parallel to my attention. I hope and pray that La Pietá will be a fruitful meditation both on the price Jesus paid for human sin in the season of Lent and on the divine love that could not be imprisoned in death during the Easter season. The staff and I look forward to welcoming all who will come and visit while the statue is here."

"We are just thrilled," said Stephanie Olmstead from the Newman Center. "It's exciting for me to see people come, especially during this Lenten time. It's a reflection; it's not just a piece of art, it's something that just touches you in certain way."

Arron Miller, a St. Catherine parishioner, attended the unveiling, not only because of the artwork's connection to Lent, but because "my family has been to Rome and I have not; they saw the real one and this is an opportunity for me to see it," he said.

The sculpture's U.S. tour, which began at the Cathedral of Saint Paul in Minnesota, in February 2010, is one of several that Vescovo has sponsored worldwide. The Pietá will remain on display at St. Catherine's Newman Center through May 31.