HOLY NAME'S "ART DECO MARY"

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One of the first churches your editor heard about when arriving in Croton was the large and very imposing Holy Name of Mary on Grand Street in the historic Upper Village.  

That's because your editor has always been a fan of both French and American Art Deco style, and a friend insisted that I just had to check out the only "Art Deco Mary" statue she had ever seen. 

The statue graces a niche in the stone facade high above the main entrance.

The church she said, was quite beautiful, with traditional painted statuary and stained glass windows of high quality, but....the exterior statue of Mary above the entrance was pure art deco--in line and form--especially the eyes, costuming and head piece. 

Make sure to take your telephoto lens she added.

And your editor did. And she was right. Again, click on the photos to see this most unusual Blessed Virgin.

p.s. As it turns out--and thanks to the volunteers at The Croton Historical Society, your editor learned that the church was completed, dedicated and opened in 1929.  You can read more about that by clicking here.

That puts Holy Name's "Mary" squarely up front with the Art Deco style (which, by the way, originated in France just before World War I, and had an important impact on architecture and design in the United States throughout the 1920s and 1930s).

So the next time you're passing Holy Name of Mary, look up...for a very serene yet thoroughly "moderne" rendition of the Blessed Virgin....and no, we don't know who the artist was.  Stay tuned....

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY A LOOK AT ONLY SOME OF THE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS AT HOLY NAME here