The Holy Family, a cast bronze sculpture with green patina by Italian artist Alfeo Faggi, presents Mary holding the baby Jesus and smiling at Joseph on the right, kneeling and bowing to Jesus, who is facing Joseph and reaching up to him. The less well defined figure on the left is possibly an angel. The simplicity of the work is characteristic of Faggi’s sculpture. This piece hangs on the west wall of the chapel to the right of the altar.

The Pennsylvania Academy of Arts owns an anonymously donated duplicate of the piece, which was created in 1949 and cast in 1952-53. The Christ Church sculpture was donated “To the Glory of God, and in Loving Memory of The Reverend Albert J.M. Wilson S.T.D. by Mr. and Mrs. James S. Adams.” Rev. Wilson served as the fourth Rector of Christ Church from 1932-1952 and was Archdeacon of Fairfield from 1933-1944. The date of the  donation to Christ Church is not recorded.

Alfeo Faggi was born in Florence in 1885 and moved to Chicago in 1920 but later settled in Woodstock, New York, where he lived until his death in 1966. As a young man he was influenced by Italian primitive artists, and as a result, all of his art had a quality of extreme simplicity. In addition to bronze sculpture, Faggi’s extensive body of work includes terra cotta sculpture, drawings, paintings and portraits. Much of Faggi’s art may be seen the Art Institute of Chicago and various other locations in Chicago. Several of the pieces are in private collections.

Emily Ragsdale