The Diocese of Paris has revealed the names of the artists responsible for the design and manufacture of the new sacred objects and furniture of Notre Dame Cathedral.
Newsroom (25/06/2023 09:00, Gaudium Press) The Diocese of Paris revealed on Friday, 23 June, the names of the artists responsible for the design and manufacture of the new sacred objects and furniture of Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Finally, the names of the artists responsible for furnishing the interior of Notre-Dame Cathedral have been revealed by the Parisian Archdiocese.
Ionna Vautrin will be responsible for making the pews of the church. In all, there will be 1500 chairs made from solid oak, making “an echo of the roof structure“, explains the artist. The shape of the seats recalls an ark and among the selection criteria was the need to be silent.
New reliquary for the relics of the Passion
The artist Dubuisson was chosen to make a new reliquary for the relic of the Crown of Thorns, the Passion nail and a piece of the Holy Cross, the most important relics of the Cathedral.
The reliquary will be almost three metres long and will place the Crown of Thorns in the centre of a large halo of glass gems with a golden background. A central structure made of wood will have some niches for the relics of the Holy Cross and the nail of the Passion.
The artist Nathalie Crinière has been chosen to furnish the side chapels, the artist Patrick Rimoux will be responsible for the cathedral lighting, and the designer Alain Richon will take care of the installation necessary for the cathedral ceremonies to be broadcast effectively on television.
Altar, tabernacle, baptistery, ambo and cathedra
The realisation of the most important sacred objects in the cathedral has been entrusted to the artist Guillaume Bardet. He was chosen among five other artists, thanks to his proposal that evokes the simplicity of the Second Vatican Council, the diocese informed in its press release.
Bardet will be responsible for the realization of the altar, the tabernacle, the baptismal font, the ambo and the chair. According to the artist, the objects will be made of bronze to highlight the golden luminosity of the cathedral.
The baptistery will be at the entrance of the cathedral and will be in the shape of a bowl. The altar by Guillaume Bardet will replace the old altar partially damaged in the fire and which had been made by the artist Jean Touret. The artist explains that the new altar represents the transition from the “stone of sacrifice” to the “table of the Eucharistic supper”.
The cathedra will be covered by a canopy that resembles an arrow pointing towards the sky. The ambo is designed to represent the letter “T”,the symbol of freedom, the artist explained.
The artistic projects approved by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich must be validated by the National Commission of Architecture and Heritage, which will meet on 13 July. After the final approval, the Archdiocese of Paris plans to exhibit the different projects to the public. (FM)
With information from the Archdiocese of Paris.
Compiled by Sandra Chisholm
