Cathedral of St. Patrick

The Romanesque Renaissance style Cathedral of St. Patrick was completed on March 1, 1907. The original main altar was designed after Bernini’s Altar of the Blessed Sacrament Chapel at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. During two renovations in 1950 and 1975, the liturgical program was altered however, decorative paint schemes and original furnishings were modified or removed.

As part of the 2006-2007 historic restoration and artistic renewal of the Cathedral interior, we provided a combination of conservation, restoration and new design services. Our approach was sympathetic to the original artistic concepts, but also considered up-to-date sensibilities and liturgical norms. New sanctuary elements, including the reredos, apse niche traceries, and furnishings were inspired by the lost originals. The decoration within the leftmost niche serves an additional purpose of covering the mechanical work behind it. The evangelist murals on the apsidal wall are new designs based on the evangelist figures that had originally been sculpted on the pulpit.