Tickets now on sale at the Museum Box Office and online at ticketmaster.com as well as by phone at 1-877-2VATICAN (1-877-282-8422)

Exhibition presented by Holy Cross Hospital in association with PNC Bank and AutoNation

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – One of the largest collections of art, documents and historically significant objects from the Vatican ever to tour North America arrives at the Museum of Art I Fort Lauderdale – Nova Southeastern University in January 2011. In making the announcement, Irvin Lippman, the Museum’s Executive Director, said, “This exhibition provides residents and visitors to South Florida a singular opportunity to view an enormously important artistic and historic collection that literally opens a window onto the development of Catholic Church, its contributions to the political and cultural life of the western world, and depictions of faith and art.”

Vatican Splendors: A Journey through Faith and Art presents spectacular paintings by artists such as Giotto and Il Guercino and sculpture by Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini, along with unique objects illustrating the Catholic Church’s impact on history and culture. The exhibition’s nearly 200 objects, many of which have never been on public view, are presented in the Museum’s galleries and in specially-created environments that enhance the visitor’s understanding of both the historical as well as the artistic significance of each work. Objects include paintings, mosaics, sculpture, jewels, intricately embroidered silk vestments, uniforms of the Papal Swiss Guard, as well as an elaborately decorated gold and silver reliquary containing bone fragments of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.

Holy Cross Hospital is the presenting sponsor for Vatican Splendors. In speaking of the exhibition and its sponsorship of it, Dr. Patrick Taylor, President and Chief Executive Officer of Holy Cross Hospital said, “The vitality and strength of a community can be judged by the richness of its offerings in education and the arts. We at Holy Cross Hospital are honored to be able to support those enriching efforts by bringing these historic and valuable artifacts from the Vatican to South Florida. Holy Cross Hospital cares for and about our community and we are happy to join with the Museum of Art and Nova Southeastern University in making this exhibition and its accompanying programs possible.” Additional financial support is being provided by PNC Bank and AutoNation.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AutoNation, Mike Jackson, who is also chairman of the Museum’s Board of Governors, explained AutoNation’s support of the exhibition by saying, “Year after year, the Museum of Art brings some of the world’s most revered and remarkable works of art to downtown Fort Lauderdale. There’s no better example of this than Vatican Splendors. It’s an exhibition that is filled with objects of incalculable historical, artistic, cultural and spiritual significance, and we’re excited that we can all experience them for ourselves right here in our own community. AutoNation is honored to be playing a role in making this exhibition happen and we look forward to continuing our efforts supporting the vibrant arts scene in Broward County.”

Craig Grant, PNC Bank’s Regional President for Florida, said, “PNC shares the wishes and aspirations of its customers, clients, and shareholders in working to make South Florida a better place to live, to do business, and to visit. By supporting worthy organizations, like the Museum of Art in its efforts to bring Vatican Splendors to our community, PNC is working to bring those wishes and aspirations to fruition. It is our great pleasure to be part of this important and beautiful exhibition.”

Organized and circulated in conjunction with the Congregazione per l’Evangelizzazione dei Popoli of the Vatican City State, Vatican Splendors is produced by Evergreen Exhibitions in association with the Museum of Art I Fort Lauderdale. The exhibition is designed to take visitors on a journey into the heart of Vatican City – one of the world’s smallest states, but also one of the richest in history, tradition and culture. The collections are organized to provide a window to the Vatican’s role in the world, with objects marking events throughout 2,000 years of history and tradition. The Vatican has played a central role in creating and preserving Western art and the exhibition includes major works created specifically for the Church. Collectively, they illustrate the evolution of the Church and its papacy beginning with Saint Peter, with special emphasis on art and historical objects reflecting significant events and periods relating to Christianity.

Monsignor Roberto Zagnoli, the Vatican curator who organized the exhibition, notes that “The power of the precious objects in the exhibition brings us all into direct contact with the history and splendor of the Vatican. As you walk through, you will discover that these objects can help us focus on the many things we share with one another, no matter the differences that sometimes appear to separate us. Our collective appreciation of the beauty we experience encourages and promotes a sense of unity between each and every one of us. The history we share as we reflect on these objects and the stories they tell is the history of our common humanity.”

Tickets to Vatican Splendors: A Journey through Faith and Art, which include general admission to the Museum, are priced at $20 for adults, $17 for seniors, and $13 for children. Museum members are able to purchase ANYTIME tickets at the special rate of $15 for adults and $11 for children age 6 through 12. Members at the Reciprocal ($150) level and above receive two free ANYTIME admissions to the exhibition. To purchase tickets, please call 877-2Vatican. For Museum membership information, please call Membership Development Associate Shelley Edwards at (954) 262-0221.

Group tickets (for groups of 15 or more) are available for $17 per adult group ticket and $8 for a student who is part of a school group. To arrange a group tour, please contact our helpful Group Sales Office at moagroupsales@moafl.org or by phone at (954) 262-0202. To arrange a group event please contact Special Events Manager Gail Vilone at 954-262-0249 or gvilone@moafl.org.

Hours for Vatican Splendors: A Journey through Faith and Art are daily from 11 am until 6 pm, with extended hours on Thursday evenings until 8 pm. Special early pre-opening hours are available for group and school tours by prior arrangement by calling the Group Sales Office at (954) 262-0202. Descriptive labels throughout the exhibition are bilingual in both English and Spanish, as is an audio tour, which is available for an additional fee.

ABOUT VATICAN SPLENDORS
Funding for the exhibition in Fort Lauderdale has been provided by Presenting Sponsor Holy Cross Hospital, and Associate Sponsors PNC Bank and AutoNation. Additional support is provided by LXR Resorts and Hotels, including Bahia Mar and the Official Fort Lauderdale Host Hotel, the Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six and Castronovo Vineyards’ Montepulciano D’Abruzzo – The Official Wine of the Museum’s Vatican Splendors exhibition. Media support is being provided by the Sun-Sentinel and Clear Channel.

Funding for the Museum of Art is provided, in part, by the Broward County Board of County Commissioners as recommended by the Broward Cultural Council, the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture.

Organized and circulated in conjunction with the Congregazione per l’Evangelizzazione dei Popoli of the Vatican City State, the exhibition is produced by Evergreen Exhibitions in association with the Museum of Art I Fort Lauderdale, Nova Southeastern University.

ABOUT THE MUSEUM OF ART I FORT LAUDERDALE
Since its founding in 1958, the Museum of Art I Fort Lauderdale has served our growing community as a gathering place for friends and neighbors, a lifelong learning center for children and adults, and as a dynamic hub for the cultural life of Broward County. Housed since 1986 in a distinguished modernist building designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes, the Museum is South Florida’s premiere destination for quality exhibitions and programs that encompass every facet of civilization’s visual history. During the past five years, more than one and one-half million visitors have enjoyed remarkable exhibitions like Cradle of Christianity, Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, and American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell. In 2008, the Museum became part of Nova Southeastern University, the sixth largest private university in the nation, to form an expanded arts campus that joins the school’s Davie location with the Museum’s downtown Fort Lauderdale address.

The Museum of Art is located at One East Las Olas Boulevard at Andrews Avenue and is always open at www.moafl.org.

Media Contacts:

Emily McCrater, Museum of Art I Fort Lauderdale
954-262-0236
emccrater@moafl.org

or

Duree Ross, Duree & Company, Inc.
954-723-9350
duree@dureeandcompany.com