front royal statue

Front Royal Parish Unveils New Marian Statue, Shrine

Special to the HERALD
(From the Issue of 8/31/06)

Father Edward C. Hathaway, pastor of St. John the Baptist Church in Front Royal, recently blessed a new shrine and statue dedicated to the Virgin “purissima.”
The four and a half foot bronze statue of Mary represents Our Lady at the moment of her reception of the Divine Word, Son of the Father, to be made flesh in her immaculate body by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit.
In her right hand she holds the lily, symbol of her purity, while her left hand is receptively held open in a gesture of her submission to the will of the Father.
The statue was designed by local artist Hamilton Reed Armstrong. Armstrong studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts with internationally recognized sculptors Carl Iluva, Walker Hancock, and Fredrick Shrady. Much of his work was produced during an extended stay in Spain, where his work was extolled by noted critics Raul Chavari and Cecilio Barbaran as a revitalization of the Spanish mystical tradition embodied in the work of El Greco, Zurbaran, Alonso Cano, Pedro de Mena and Martinez Montañez.
Armstrong has taught art history at Christendom College in Front Royal and studio art for the Magi Center at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He presently teaches at The Height's School in Potomac, Md., and is professor of Fine Arts for the distance-learning program of The International Catholic University, Notre Dame, IN.
Armstrong’s work may be seen in private collections, museums, churches, and in public spaces in the United States, Europe, and Africa. Recent commissions include the commemorative medal for the Victims of Communism Committee, Washington D.C.; Portrait bust of H.H. Pius X for the papal memorial chapel, Riese Italy, Portrait bust of H.H. John Paul II for The John Paul II Cultural Center, Washington D.C., the Papanicolas memorial Chalice for St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church, Washington D.C.; Monument to 11th century botanist, Ibn AlBeitar for Benalmadena, Spain, Monument to Grandparents “Abuelos” for Torremolinos, Spain, and he is presently working on a series of monumental sculptures for the Ave Maria School of Law, Ann Arbor, Mich.