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Amidst the neo-gothic splendor of the famous New York church, a gathering of present-day migrants—mostly Latino, Asian, and Black—gather on an incline with their humble sacks and bags. A father in casual wear holds a baby, and a youth in trainers appears thoughtful at the front. High up among the billowing clouds, the sacred Lamb rests upon a pale platform within the radiant glow of dangling golden lines suggesting the divine essence.

This humane and magnificent scene constitutes a segment of what is perhaps the most significant new piece of public art in today’s riven America.

“The message I aim to convey through this piece,” declares the artist, “is our shared experience and unity. To utilize such a vast canvas for this statement is an extraordinary privilege.”

The cathedral, often called the nation’s parish church, serves about 2.5 million New York Archdiocese Catholics. It’s one of the two most important cathedrals in the country and by far the most visible with 5 million visitors a year. This mural is the biggest lasting installation ordered by the church in over a century.

A Vision of Solidarity

Via the prize-winning idea, the artwork accomplishes a lasting goal to honor the famed vision featuring holy figures including Mary, Joseph, John the Baptist, the Lamb, and angels at a little rural church in Knock, Ireland, in 1879. The painter extends that homage to encompass earlier Irish newcomers and New York’s broader multicultural immigration.

The extensive western facade, flanking the cathedral’s main doors, showcases a group of five prominent local Catholics paired with five contemporary emergency service members. Above each assembly floats a large angelic figure within a context of luminous lines suggesting the divine.

Celebrating Varied Contributions

Regarding the five Catholic icons the church selected immigrant archbishop John Hughes, Dorothy Day, the ex-bohemian New Yorker turned social activist, and Pierre Toussaint, the former enslaved Haitian who became a New York society hairdresser and major Catholic benefactor. The painter included early saint Kateri Tekakwitha, the initial Native American saint, and picked Al Smith, the popular New York politico of the 1920s and 1930s. The emergency workers were also the creator’s concept.

The piece’s technique is distinctly figurative—a deliberate selection. “Because this is an American painting, rather than European,” the artist explains. “Abroad, lengthy traditions of church art exist, they no longer require such approaches. However, here we must.”

An Endeavor of Passion

The mural’s enormous labor involved about 30 people, involving a specialist for the precious metal applications. Planning required half a year within a spacious atelier in a waterfront district, and then most of a year for the intensive artwork—ascending and descending platforms for assessment.

“Well, my father was an architect,” he replies. “So I understood how to plan for the space.”

Regarding the departing church leader, he declared at the mural’s presentation: “Some have asked me, are you trying to make a statement about immigration? Well, sure we are, all right? Specifically, that newcomers are divine creations.”

“We’re all in this together,” the painter echoes. “Whether we like it or not,” he adds. Diverse political adherents appear in the piece. And multiple different religions. “But shared humanity means shared humanity,” he maintains. “It includes those beyond one’s circle.”