The above painting he made for an exhibit related to the 2024 National Eucharistic Congress. It depicts Holy Mass being celebrated by Fr. Gregory Pendergraft, FSSP, with the artist's son serving the Mass along with another young man who is a friend of the artist and his family.
In an age when beauty is so devalued and held in contempt, it is a breath of fresh air to witness the dramatic revival of representational art, classical figurative painting, a testimony to good taste and the wisdom and accomplishment of great artists. Eric's religious images capture profound moments, each a glimpse into the supernatural world of salvation history: holiness, grace and redemption.
The merits of beauty evaluate the works of any artist. True art is defined by the communication of beauty. Eric's works stand out as beautiful, especially in our current age where art is generally described solely on the basis of self-expression, rarely taking into consideration objective standards of beauty.
Kudos to Eric for his advanced style. The revival of the classical movement is the cultural embodiment of the creed -- of all that is good, true, and beautiful. After all, beauty is a transcendental, a property of being itself and God is beauty. Catholics revere beauty through the profound exposition of art.
Some of his works are in a perfect Roman Baroque style, as seen below in the image of St. Stephen offering his crown to Our Lady (copied from an original by Gyula Benczúr), with monumental characters, light and motion as seen in typical paintings in Rome. This creation graces the high altar of his home parish of St. Stephen of Hungry, an apostolate of the FSSP in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
We wish Eric well in his endeavors of beautifying church interiors as his portfolio grows and his style evolves. He also creates from wood some of the frames for his paintings. Interested readers are welcome to refer to his site here.
Below is one of his paintings of the Resurrection that was on display at the church of St. Sebastian in Akron, Ohio. Further below is another religious art commission, the Baptism of Christ that can be seen today at the church of St. Mary in Hamburg, Pennsylvania.
