Stephen Antonakos * Christianity

"TheMeditation Chapel of Saints Peter and Paul is a space for people to sit and be by themselves. It invites you to be peaceful. For me, personally, it is sacred."
--Stephen Antonakos

In his Meditation Chapel of Saints Peter and Paul, which contains panels covered in gold leaf mounted over neon, Stephen Antonakos creates a contemplative space. The gold connects his works to traditional icons venerated in Orthodox Christianity. Icons depict sacred figures, who typically are surrounded by burnished gold. The icon (displayed at the right) represents God the Father, Holy Wisdom (Saint Sophia), St. John the Baptist, and Mary.
--Kimberly D. Judge, Ackland Graduate Intern

"It is not God who needs visible expressions, it is people who seek to give expression to the things which lie deep within the human heart, and connection to the One who lies beyond... So while we will always treasure the familiar images that initially helped us on our pilgrimage to God, we find others we add that arise from our own age, in mediums which perhaps were previously unavailable."
--Father John G. Durbin, St. Thomas More Catholic Church, Chapel Hill