In the days after Pope Francis died, Chicago-based iconographer Joe Malham recalled the moments that, for him, defined Francis’ papacy: washing the feet of women in a prison, embracing a man who suffered from a disfiguring disease, inviting a young girl with Down syndrome to sit on the stage next to him after she had wandered from her parents. Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who gave the homily at Pope Francis’ funeral April 26, said it best, Malham said. “He said Francis was always striving to build bridges and not walls,” said Malham, who has included Pope Francis in his series of icons of 52 “Catholic Heroes of the 20th Century.” “That’s the common thread among all of them: They tried to build bridges, in their homes, in religion, in all kinds of ways.” These icons are different than the traditional Eastern icons Malham usually writes. Those depict their idealized subjects as almost otherworldly, perfected by God and filled with God’s light, and are done with expensive materials, usually written on wood with gold leaf accents. These are done on paper, with more readily accessible materials, Malham said. “They’re done in a more organic style, and they’re very raw and almost unfinished,” he said. “We are here to complete their stories. We think, ‘They were just like me, and I could do what they did.’” The Catholic heroes icons use something closer to a Western style of religious art, he said, a style that emphasizes the humanity of Jesus and the saints. Traditional Eastern iconography, on the other hand, usually emphasizes their divinity. The “Catholic Heroes of the 20th Century” series aimed to create images and tell the stories both of people who were known around the world, such as Pope Francis and St. Mother Teresa of Kolkata, as well those who are relatively unknown in North America, such as St. Laura Montoya of Colombia, who founded a religious order to work with Indigenous people in her country. Others, such as football coach Vince Lombardi and director John Ford, are well-known, but not necessarily for their faith. “There are people of all colors, men, women, children, laypeople and religious,” Malham said. “My intention was to create 52 of them, and create a book of meditations, one for each week, with seven questions for each hero.” The book is still a work in progress, as Malham looks for a publisher while his friend Ken Ortega, director of evangelization at Holy Name Cathedral, writes meditations with reflection questions for each icon. Prints are available for purchase, Malham said, although the first print of the Pope Francis icon will not be sold. That is going to the Pope Francis Center operated by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, 3524 W. Diversey Ave. “I’m honored that they are accepting it,” Malham said. For more information, visit trinityicons.com.
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