Crossroads Roundup: Sainthood for Antoni Gaudí, Iron Age Necropolis in the UAE, and Gorgeous Pompeii Statues
The latest news in art, archaeology, culture, and more.
Saint Gaudí?
The big news in Catholicism this week was, of course, the passing of Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday at the age of 88. But since the last Roundup, another story from the Church caught my eye: Antoni Gaudí, the renowned Spanish architect and the mind behind the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, may achieve sainthood.
On April 14th, the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints issued a decree recognizing Gaudí’s “heroic virtues,” a major step toward canonization. Gaudí is often known as “God’s architect” for the role that faith played in his designs. He took over the design and construction of the Sagrada Familia in 1883, and the church remained unfinished by his death in 1926. In fact, the church is still under construction today—with an estimated completion date of 2026, 100 years after Gaudí’s passing.
Having visited the Sagrada Familia, I can see why an artist like Gaudí receives such reverence. In the words of Susanna Clarke, “A church is a sort of wood. A wood is a sort of church.” Gaudí understood that sentiment—the Sagrada Familia blends the Gothic with Modernism by centering its design around the motif of the Tree of Life, and indeed, the church’s interior made me feel as if I was walking through a forest of stone. If there’s any architect who would qualify for sainthood based on his designs alone, it would be Gaudí.
First major Iron Age necropolis found in the UAE:
This week, Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism announced that its researchers discovered an Iron Age necropolis in the Al Ain region. Constructed around 1000 B.C., it is the first major Iron Age necropolis to be discovered in the United Arab Emirates.
Sadly, grave-robbing was a common activity in the ancient world, so most of the tombs were picked through. But researchers were able to find some artifacts, including jewelry, copper-alloy weapons, and ceramics. The next stage of the project involves analyzing the human remains to determine the deceased’s ages, relationships, health, and more.
Jaber Saleh Al Merri, Director of the Historic Environment Department at DCT Abu Dhabi, told Gulf News:
This discovery promises to transform our understanding of the ancient Emirates. For years, the Iron Age burial traditions remained a mystery, but now we have tangible evidence that brings us closer to the people who lived here 3,000 years ago. It reinforces our efforts to preserve, promote, and protect Abu Dhabi’s heritage for future generations.
More finds from Pompeii:
The ongoing excavations at Pompeii continue to deliver exciting finds. Several weeks ago, the Pompeii Archaeological Park announced the discovery of two nearly life-sized statues in a necropolis. Researchers believe the statues were erected in honor of two individuals buried on the site.
There’s a chance that the man and woman were a couple, though it’s also possible that the woman was a priestess. She is depicted holding a bushel of laurel leaves and wearing a veil and a crescent moon pendant, leading researchers to believe that she could have been a priestess of Ceres (the Roman goddess of agriculture and fertility). While women in Roman society had vastly limited rights, one of the highest positions a woman could attain was that of a priestess.
“Do you actually like modern art? Or did the CIA convince you?”
In every Roundup, I share the work of another Substack writer that caught my eye. This week, I’m featuring an essay by
, who wrote a fascinating piece about the CIA’s role in promoting Abstract Expressionism as an emblem of American freedom during the Cold War. The CIA accomplished this indirectly by funneling money into institutions like the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Congress for Cultural Freedom in West Berlin:The idea that the CIA used American Abstract Expressionist art as a Cold War weapon circulated in art circles for decades. After all, how else could a country that dismissed modern art in the 1940s come to embrace it so passionately just a decade later?
For years, the open secret passed quietly through galleries and classrooms, until the fall of the Berlin Wall, when former CIA agents finally confirmed what many had long suspected: that in the years following World War II, the agency—eager to prove America had more to offer than Coca-Cola and capitalism—had quietly launched a covert campaign to export American art, and with it, the values of freedom and self-expression.
However, as Freyja notes, the CIA cannot be credited with inventing Abstract Expression—that rests with the artists themselves. You can read the entire story here.
Emily Brontë was also a painter!
A rare watercolor painting by Emily Brontë, author of Wuthering Heights (1847), was purchased at auction by the Brontë Parsonage Museum for £32,000 ($42,000). After assessment from a conservator, the painting will be placed on permanent display for the public. As the museum’s principal curator Ann Dinsdale told Artnet:
Emily is probably the most enigmatic of the Brontës. She died at the age of 30, and very few manuscripts or letters by her have survived. It’s extremely rare to see anything associated with Emily coming on the market, making this painting of great importance.
And finally, the Frick Collection reopens to the public.
The Frick Collection remains one of my favorite museums in New York City. Though it’s not as large as the Met or the Museum of Modern Art, the Frick is housed in a beautiful Gilded Age mansion that allows visitors to step back in time. After four years of a major restoration project, the Frick is open to the public once again.
I love these roundups!! It’s incredible how much of Pompeii is still unexcavated, I wonder how many treasures are just sitting there waiting for us to wake them up. Also now have to make the Frick Collection my weekend solo-date activity.