Papal Nuncio Archbishop Nicola Girasoli has promised to add to the Nunciature’s art collection by purchasing one of the pieces done by Trinidad-based Dutch artist Michiel van Hout.

Visiting van Hout’s Holy Week Art Exhibit at the Art Society last Sunday, Archbishop Girasoli told the small gathering that he was a lover of art and often went to the art galleries of countries he visits to get a sense of the people and culture. He said he considered the art produced by any artist as “a gift from God to the artist” and as something which required a kind of kenosis, which he explained was a Greek word for the emptying of oneself to allow for God’s will to be done.

Archbishop Girasoli described the March 27-April 5 exhibition as inspirational and touching. “This is the first I have seen in Trinidad,” he said of the contemporary religious art on display, and was pleased with the different themes of religion and Church and the mediums used.

“I say go ahead, go ahead in your commitment to religious art,” he told van Hout, noting that there was religiosity everywhere in the Caribbean that could be captured.

Van Hout thanked the Nuncio for his presence and words of support, saying he was often inspired by what others expressed when they saw his artwork. Part proceeds of the exhibition go towards the Archbishop’s Appeal, for the restoration of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

The Holy Week Art Exhibition ends on Easter Sunday with a closing reception at the Art Society headquarters, Federation Park.