Frescoes of St. Thomas
When the University of St. Thomas commissioned Mark Balma to decorate the Founder's Hall, it made a commitment to continuing the tradition of making public spaces a forum for the expression of ideas. The frescoes of St. Thomas are an open classroom where students can learn about how old ideas can take on new light; and how these ideas will be carried on for generations by an ancient art form.
The atrium ceiling is one of the largest frescoes in the United States. The 17 by 112-foot work is a focal point in the building's Hall of Founders. Here artist Mark Balma painted a contemporary, allegorical articulation of seven virtues discussed by St. Thomas Aquinas in his Summa Theologiae (Summary of Theology) - faith, justice, prudence, hope, temperance, fortitude and charity. On the 12 supporting pillars are fresco portraits of 12 donors (or their designees) to the Minneapolis campus.
Visit the Frescoes
The Hall of Founders is open:
Monday - Thursday 7:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Friday and Saturday 7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
The Seven Virtues
Although the concept of seven virtues is associated with Christianity, they actually predate it by several centuries. Most credit the philosopher Plato with listing a few of them. Theologians and theorists may define the virtues differently and they have undergone some changes.
Pillar Portraits
Water Birds of the Frescoes
Thanks go to Louise Balma for her research into and selection of the birds used in the fresco. The birds represent those species found from the Arctic Circle to the Gulf of Mexico. Each relies on the Mississippi River for sustenance either year-round or as part of their migration.
Mark Balma
Mark Balma distinctly remembers wanting to be an artist from the age of 5 and loved to draw full scale figures of the saints for the religious study course in his Catholic grade school. At 16, Balma enrolled as the youngest student at the specialized art school, Atelier Lack. After several years of studio training with Twin Cities painter Richard Lack, he received two Elizabeth Greensheild grants to support himself and pay tuition.
Balma moved to Italy to study the works of Pietro Annigoni, then considered the world's master fresco painter. At 24, in 1981, Mark Balma had enough work assembled to have a one man exhibition in Milan. The show was a success, but the next two years were difficult ones.
By day he fulfilled portrait commissions by day and studied Italian by night.
In 1983 he moved to London and stayed for two years exhibiting again and fulfilling more portrait commissions. He returned in 1984 to fulfill a commission for St. Mary's College in Winona, MN to embarked on his first major fresco project of three murals for the Performing Arts Center there.
In 1988 he painted a fresco for Huber Funeral Chapel in Excelsior, Minnesota.
In the fall of 1995 he began two fresco paintings in the historic Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Balma also paints oil portraits. He has recently completed portraits of Gen. Colin Powell, Dick Cheney, James Baker, Gen. Brent Scowcraft and former President George Bush.
The Assistants
The St. Thomas fresco project profoundly affected Balma's apprentices and their goals. The artist founded a genuine workshop, where all learned together and participated equally in the daily tasks that are the foundation of a successful fresco.
They were also primarily responsible for the water birds, where each assistant took ownership over a particular bird, did more research; drew sketches and "cartoons," and painted one or more birds.
Mastering the fresco medium is a lifelong pursuit, but the assistants took the first step on that exhilarating and often frustrating journey. To understand the temperamental nature of the pigments and plaster was to comprehend and become a part of centuries of artistic endeavor.
Kay Blassingame has lived in several regions throughout the United States, and chose to move to Minneapolis in 1985 because of its reputation as a strong arts community. She earned her B.F.A. at Western State College in Guinnison, Colo., and completed two years of postgraduate study at the Art Students League and the New York Academy of Art in New York City.
A scenic artist, Blassingame has worked at KTCA-TV, Children's Theatre Company, Dayton's, and on various film projects. Trained as a chiaroscurist, Blassingame admires the art of Rembrandt, Val'zquez and John Singer Sargent, who all share her interest in the interplay of light and shadow. This quality infuses her paintings and drawings.
Blassingame heard about Mark Balma's project and sent him slides of her work in anticipation of becoming an assistant. She aspires to learn more about fresco and eventually to teach, disseminating and preserving knowledge of this complex medium. Blassingame feels fresco is a challenging mode of artistic expression, particularly because nature can influence the daily working conditions so greatly. She also is enthusiastic about the connection between public art and fresco.
Jessie Fisher received a B.F.A. degree from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Fisher met Mark Balma in the early stages of the St. Thomas fresco project. Her interest in learning the art of fresco painting was so strong that she asked if she could work with him, if only as a "go-fer." Instead, Balma offered her an apprenticeship and she learned the demands of fresco firsthand. The fresco process appeals to Fisher because of its methodical, almost mathematical organization of technique.
Jessie has completed a fresco panel for Studio Balma at the Huber Mortuary in Eden Prairie, Minn., as well as several private commissions in the Twin Cities, including a watercolor series for the Division of Business at the University of St. Thomas. She is currently working on a commission for the Graduate School of Business at St. Thomas, and is pursuing an M.F.A degree at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia.
Jan Struck received his B.S. degree in graphic design and illustration from Bemidji State University. Formerly an art director, Struck currently is exploring a career change to a fine art discipline. To that end, he recently attended Atelier LeSueur in Minnetonka to further develop his drawing and painting skills, working in watercolor, charcoal and silverpoint.
Inspired by a lecture given by Mark Balma at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Struck contacted Balma regarding an apprenticeship. Struck became very involved with the fresco project, often undertaking the early morning preparation tasks so crucial to a successful day section of plaster, a necessary step for a productive day of painting.
Suzanne Howe received a B.A. in art from Winona State University and an M.A. from Morehead State University in Morehead, Ky. In addition, Howe attended Atelier LeSueur in Minnetonka, Minn., for five years to further hone her skills.
A practicing graphic artist, Howe also creates landscapes, portraits, still lifes and florals in oils and pastels. Her work has been featured in several juried competitions and small-group shows in Minnesota and Kentucky, including the juried exhibition at the Minnesota State Fair, where she received an honorable mention.
While at Atelier LeSueur, Howe became acquainted with Mark Balma and later met with him in Assisi, Italy, during a European journey.
Kristin Amanda worked as decorative artist for more than 16 years, creating murals, paintings, furniture, fabric and jewelry.
Although Amanda works primarily on private commissions, she has done commercial work for Andersen Windows, Steiner and Koppleman Homes and the Dayton-Hudson Corp. Her fine art has been featured in several juried exhibitions, including the Minnetonka Center for the Arts, the Artists Association of Minnesota, and Northern Lights, a five-state regional show. She also has been a participant in the annual auction fundraiser at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and presented a solo exhibition at Cosecha Design.
Doug DeSant lived in the Minneapolis area most of his life, and attended St. John's University in Collegeville, Minn., where he obtained a B.A. in studio arts and Spanish. Focusing on figure drawing and intaglio printmaking as well as stone and wood sculpture, DeSanto received the Claus Meinberg Award, given annually to an outstanding fine-art student. He furthered his professional endeavors through mentorships with two sculptors.
Several years ago DeSanto read an article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune detailing Mark Balma's work. He did some detective work, locating Balma's relatives in the Twin Cities and eventually visiting Balma in Assisi.
Paul Hietpas is a graduate of Cretin-Derham Hall high school, where he pursued advanced art courses. Featured in Macalester College's "Best 100" exhibition, which highlighted 100 outstanding local high school artists, Hietpas went on to the University of St. Thomas to obtain a B.A. in studio art. He currently specializes in ceramic sculpture and pastels.
Lucia Tosti is a native of Bastia, Umbra, Italy, is a self-taught artist who works in a variety of media. An apprentice to Mark Balma in Assisi, Tosti traveled to the United States for the first time to assist in the preliminary stages of the St. Thomas project. She previously worked with Balma on the preparatory cartoons for the St. Thomas frescoes, as well as his commission for the Church of St. John the Baptist in Pierre San Nicol, Italy.
Maren Nelson is a summa cum laude graduate in art history at the University of Minnesota, where she was a recipient of the Selmer Birkelo Scholarship and the Waller Scholarship, both awards given to outstanding students in the College of Liberal Arts. She studied fresco conservation in Italy on the Student Project for Amity Among Nations (SPAN) program.
Nelson has worked in various areas of the arts field, including gallery management and registration at the University of Minnesota's Katherine E. Nash Gallery; student services at the Minnetonka Center for the Arts; and curatorial assistance at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. One of her projects at the institute was the coordination of the exhibition Visions of the People: A Pictorial History of Plains Indian Life.
Rollin Alm studied studio arts at North Dakota State University. Concentrating on silk screen printmaking and watercolors, he has been a professional artist since 1984, winning several best-of-show awards.
Alm has exhibited his work at the Witmer Art Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Rusty Hendrickson came out of retirement to lay the plaster for the frescoes. Laying plaster mixed with lime is an almost forgotten art that only a handful of skilled craftsmen still know how to do. Between 7 and 9 in the morning every day, Rusty came in and laid the plaster on the area to be painted that day, called a "day section."
Special thanks go to Maren Nelson for her text in Fresco, the Assistants' Exhibition.
Resources
Below are the sources used in the creation of the Frescoes of the University of St. Thomas.
Virtue in Literature
- Barbour, John D Tragedy as a Critique of Virtue: The Nobel and Ethical Reflection 1984
- Berthoff, Warner Literature and the Continuances of Virtues 1986
Virtue - Study and Teaching
- Can virtue be taught? Edited by Barbara Darling - Smith Notre Dame Ind.: Notre Dame Univ. Press c 1993 Boston Univ. studies in Philosophy and religion
Cardinal Virtues
- Caseym, John Pagan Virtue: An Essay in Ethics (1)1990, (2) 1991
- Pieper, Josef 1904 Das Viergespann: Klugheit, Gerechtigkeit, Tapferkeis, Mass 1964
Theological Virtues
- Garrigou - Zagrange, Reginald, 1877 The Theological Virtues 1965
- Ratzinge, Josep To Look on Christ: Exercises in Faith, Hope and Love 1991
- Shoemaker H. Stephen 1943 The Jekeyll & Hyde Syndrome: A new Encounter with the 7 Deadly Sins & the 7 Lively Virtues 1987
- Wadell, Paul J. An Interpretation of Aquinas Treatise on the Passions, The Virtues, & the Gifts from the Perspective of Charity as Friendship with God.
Virtues - Addresses, Essays, Lectures
- Geach, Peter Thomas 1916 "The Virtue" Cambridge U Press 1977 The Stanton Lecture 1973-4 Virtues - Anecdotes Church, J. Forrester The 7 Deadly Virtues: A guide to Purgatory for Atheists and True Believers Harper and Row c1988
Virtues (Buddhism)
- Tachiloma, Shundio The Ethics of Buddhims Curzon Press, Barnes & Noble 1975
Virtues - Early Works to 1800
- Hildegard, Saint 1098-1179 Hildegard of Bingen: The Book of the Rewards of Life. Garland, 1994
Virtues - History
- Porter, Jean 1955 The Recovery of Virtue: The Relevance of Aquinas for Christian Ethics Westminster, J. Knox Press 1990
- Wadell, Paul J. The Primacy of Love: An Introduction to the Ethics of Thomas Aquinas Paulist Press, 1992
Virtues in Art
- Chew, Samuel Claggett, 1888 The Virtues Reconciled; an Iconographic Study University of Toronto Press 1947
Virtues, Infused
- Flyom, Thomas Edward, 1880 The Supernatural Virtues, Macmillan, 1928
Also:
- McIntire, Alister After Virtue
- Pieper, Josef Leisure: Basic of Culture by
Reference Books
- Symbols and Symbolism "An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols" JC. Cooper
- Themes and Hudson 1978 500 Fifth Ave. New York 10110
- "Symbolic & Mytholigical Animals" J.C. Cooper Aquarian Press 77-85 Fulham Palace Road Hammersmith, London W6 8JB England
Fresco Technique & History
- The Great Age of Fresco Discoveries, Recoveries and Survivals Millard Meiss, Metropoitan Museum of Art 1970
- Cennino Cennini "The Craftman's Handbook" Translated by D.V. Thomson, Jr. New Haven 1993 New York. Written in the early Fifteenth Century
- D.V. Thompson, Jr. "The Materials of Medieval Painting, New Haven 1936
Fables
- The Oxfam book of Children's Stories - South & North, East & West. Edited by Michael Rosen Introduction by Whoopi Goldberg
Virtues in American History
- Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac
- Declaration of Independence
- Constitution of the United States of America
- Alexis De Toqueville, Democracy in America
- Emancipation Proclamation Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, 1865
- Franklin Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address, 1932
- Franklin Roosevelt's "Four Freedoms" Speech, Jan. 1941
- John Kennedy's Inaugural Address, 1961
- Martin Luther's "I Have a Dream" Speech, 1963
- William Bennet, The Book of Virtues Newspaper article Time article