St Philip Neri and the Oxford Oratory

Alvin Ong, whose painting of the Oratorian martyr  Bl. Salvio Hiuix-Miralpeix I wrote about last autumn, and whose work I also featured on Good Friday this year, has also painted a new picture of St Philip Neri holding the Oxford Oratory - an appropriate image to post to mark St Philip's feast today.

In part it is doubtless inspired by the well known Guido Reni painting of the Saint, but the artist has done far more than make a derivitive copy or re-working.

 

St Philip Neri of the Oxford Oratory, 2014


Acrylic on wood, 43 x 73cm

Image: Alvin Ong on Facebook

"Holy Darkness, blessed night, heaven's answer, hidden from our sight."

Alvin says of this painting: "The brief was to paint St Philip Neri, founder of the their religious order holding the Oxford Oratory. One idea I had was to feature in the work the actual vestments worn and used in the Oratory here. At the back you can barely make out the altar pillars of the Oratory sanctuary.

Painting the little Oratory right was the biggest challenge. I needed to do some geometrical angle calculations to capture the perfections of the rose window. And the vestments.... they are a painting within a painting, a world within another world.

To get St Philip right, I studied and reconstructed his face from numerous 18th century paintings and busts. Its an exciting step because, now, I think I've gone beyond just plain copying."

I am grateful to Irim Sarwar for forwarding the appropriate link to the picture and Alvin's comments.

New painting of the Crucifixion with saints at the Oxford Oratory

Crucifixion with saints, 2014

Acrylic on wood, 37 x 65cm

The saints are St Leopold Mandić, St Thérèse of Lisieux, St Mary Magdalen, Bl.Dominic Barberi and St Philip Neri.

Image:Alvin Ong on Facebook

The artist, Alvin Ong, says of this painting:

"A work with the patron saints of one of the Oratorians at the Oratory, who celebrates his Silver Jubilee this year on the feast of St Mary Magdalene. 
 

"Make me feel as thou hast felt;
make my soul to glow and melt
with the love of Christ my Lord.

Let me share with thee His pain,
who for all my sins was slain,
who for me in torments died.

Let me mingle tears with thee,
mourning Him who mourned for me,
all the days that I may live." 

- from the Stabat Mater

At the heart of the work, is death, mourned by St Mary Magdalene, with one of her attributes, the skull. The white flowers and petals, and the glory of the light that pours in from above, however, remind us of the joy of the resurrection.

Altogether quite a joy to paint, really enjoyed resolving its many complexities into a seamless whole."

I am grateful to Irim Sarwar for forwarding the appropriate link to the picture and Alvin Ong's comments.

Portrait of Bl.Salvio Huix-Miralpeix for the Oxford Oratory

Following the 11am Mass at the Oxford Oratory yesterday there was the unveiling in the parish social centre of a painting of Bl. Salvio Huix-Miralpeix, beatified last year, and the first Oratorian to be formally recognised as a martyr. The portrait has been commissioned by the Fathers of the Oratory for the church.

The portrait on its easil

Image: Oxford Oratory

The artist is Alvin Ong who is studying here in Oxford at the Ruskin School of Art. He worked from a photograph, but instead of full choir habit depicted the Bishop in habitus Piano and added the palm of martyrdom. The pectoral cross and ring are those of Bl. Salvio, who had sent them to Pope Pius XI in anticipation of the fate which befell him in 1936.

There are more pictures of the occasion and information about the artist and the picture on the Oratory website at New painting unveiled.