FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 22, 2021

THE SHEEN CENTER ANNOUNCES GALLERY EXHIBIT “PORTRAITS OF GRACE” FEATURING NEW YORK AS THE EPICENTER OF GRACE

(New York, NY) The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture announced the opening of a breakthrough gallery exhibit titled PORTRAITS OF GRACE this weekend. The exhibit, which will run through October 4 in The Sheen Center Gallery, situated at 18 Bleecker Street, (entrance to the gallery on Elizabeth Street), is part of a hybrid initiative by the same name designed as a creative bridge between online programming and a much-anticipated return to in-person events at The Sheen Center. The PORTRAITS OF GRACE exhibit was curated by Jeffrey Bruno, creative director and photographer for Aleteia, and consists of twenty-five photographs, each representing one of the many occurrences of mercy and grace by frontline workers, families, and strangers every day in New York City at the peak of the pandemic in 2020.

The PORTRAITS OF GRACE exhibit, like the broader initiative, represents an artistic marker between the sacrifices made by New Yorkers during the COVID lockdown of 2020 and the incremental return to life in 2021. The Sheen Center’s doors open to the public for the first time since March 2020 with this new Sheen Center Gallery exhibit and its stunning photographs punctuate the journey of a city from “epicenter” of a global pandemic to “epicenter” of grace, all thanks to the courage of our frontline workers and the tenacity of its citizens. COVID-19 brought with it great uncertainty and a radical disruption to life. Faith, in all its forms, has played an important part in the ongoing recovery and revival of New York City. In the face of tens of thousands of lives lost, New Yorkers, came together in discrete moments of ordinary and extraordinary heroism. This exhibit captures those moments. 

In hospitals, that meant our frontline workers tended to the sick. In the Archdiocese of New York that meant feeding the hungry, with over 10 million meals having been shared to date by Catholic Charities with those suffering from food insecurity. It also meant ensuring that children had consistency in their education, parents enough money to pay their rent, tuition, and put food on the table. Many of the photographs comprising the exhibit capture those moments of grace in hospitals, churches, and food pantries – all of which represented a lifeline to so many in a time of need.

The PORTRAITS OF GRACE exhibit is a call to remembrance as much as it is a signpost showing the way forward. It is available to the public in limited release through October 4.

Members of the press interested in covering are asked to kindly respond to this email.

Proof of vaccination and appropriate face-coverings will be required of all visitors.

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 7pm; and Sunday 1pm to 5pm

The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture in partnership with the Anglosphere Society, the Knights of Columbus, and contributing members the Archdiocese of New York, America Media, and the National Review Institute, is producing a multi-media experience comprised of photographs, testimonials, videos, and hybrid events intended to honor our frontline workers and commemorate this shared chapter of unimaginable loss and commensurate heroism in our city’s history. This exhibit seeks to capturethe profoundly human and transcendent moments in the pandemic experience that the city witnessed every day in 2020.

The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture (www.sheencenter.org) is a New York City arts center located in NoHo that presents a vibrant mix of theater, film, music, art and talk events. A project of the Archdiocese of New York, The Sheen Center serves all New Yorkers by presenting performances and artists that reflect the true, the good, and the beautiful.  Named for the late Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, best remembered as an inspirational author, radio host and two-time Emmy Award-winning television personality, The Sheen Center reflects his modern-day approach to contemporary topics. The Sheen Center is a state-of-the-art theater complex that includes the 270-seat off-Broadway Loreto Theater, equipped with five-camera high-definition TV and live-stream capability and a multi-track recording studio; the 80-seat off-off-Broadway Black Box Theater; four rehearsal studios; and an art gallery.