MOA Showcases Restored ‘Gates of Paradise’ Replicas After a Decade of Restoration.
In 14th-century Florence, Italian sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti spent 27 years creating the Gates of Paradise. The original gilded bronze gates once served as doors for the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Florence. Each of the 10 panels illustrates an Old Testament story.
The Gates arrived at the BYU Museum of Art (MOA) with 56 damaged plaster casts 10 years ago. Since then, BYU has worked diligently to restore the Gates to their full glory.
Several students collaborated under the mentorship of John Adams, manager of BYU exhibit production and installation, to bring the gates back to life. The Gates now stand 18 feet tall in the MOA, where students and members of the Provo community can see the golden panels for themselves.
“This was a very challenging project, and there were a lot of unknowns from the beginning. We had to learn and collaborate,” Adams said. “The students spent a lot of time with each other, mentoring one another and passing along what they learned.”
The restoration project has been educationally enriching for students within BYU’s Department of Art.
“Each student developed their own special skill set along the way,” Adams said. “They would rotate through the panels, and each student would use their strengths to make each panel better.”
Students took care not to damage the plaster while gilding the Gates. The gilding process required carefully applying gold leaf to the surface, giving the Gates their shine.
Shortly after the Gates of Paradise replicas were unveiled, an interfaith panel met to discuss them. Speakers included leaders from Catholic, Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths. The group discussed the stories depicted within the Gates’ panels and how art and religion intertwine.
The Gates depict a range of Old Testament scenes, including Moses receiving the tablets of the Ten Commandments and the story of Abraham and Isaac.
Rabbi Maeera Y. Schreiber, former director of religious studies at the University of Utah, represented the Jewish faith and spoke about the Abraham and Isaac panel.
“The narrative has a sacred place in both Christian and Jewish theology,” Schreiber said.
She added that every religion has a distinct and meaningful connection to the stories the plates illustrate.
“There are multiple ways to look at the same story,” Schreiber said.
Ahmad Salah, imam for BYU Muslim students represented the Muslim faith at the event. He said the panels offer lessons, especially the one depicting Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, which illustrates temptation and redemption.
“God gave us the formula to fix mistakes,” Salah said.
Maddie Blonquist, one of the panelists representing Christianity who is also a curator of religious art, shared how the doors impacted the people of 15th-century Florence.
“The doors would have been situated originally in the baptistery as people entered in to make sacred promises and express their devotion to the divine through baptism,” Blonquist said.
Mathew Gilbert, co-president of the BYU Catholic Newman Club, shared how art strengthens his faith.
“Every building you walk into is just a regular and worldly building,” Gilbert said. “But the point of the church is to go in and experience something different.”
When you enter a sacred space, Gilbert said, your senses are engaged in novel ways. Viewing artistic feats such as the Gates of Paradise helps people connect with God.
Schreiber spoke about the dedication Ghiberti poured into creating the doors, saying his work has and will continue to grow people’s faith.
“The weight of taking on God's work, which is not something you always want to sign up for, is hard,” Schreiber said. “That is something I really appreciate about Ghiberti.”
The Gilded Paradise exhibition is on display in the MOA’s main area from Feb. 20 to Oct. 24. The Gates will later be permanently installed in the MOA atrium.