Tree of Life

A new frontispiece for the altar during Season of Creation!

It has been my great privilege to create a frontispiece for the main altar in St. Ignatius Church to honor the Season of Creation, September 2026.  This sacred space has been a part of my life since I was 13 when the interior was unpainted gray plaster and not yet adorned with the glorious stained glass and golden details.

When asked to envision an addition to this worship space in resonance with the theme of the Season of Creation, two things immediately came to mind; the image of a Tree of Life and the vibrant community that is this parish. Designing a visual that spoke to being rooted in one's faith community, growing in purpose together and branching out to individual contributions of gratitude and service came easily to my drawing board.

Carving and painting the large panel and adding the mirrored details brought the image to life, representing a community that is brilliant in life-giving praise of the Creator and the creation.  My intentional approach was to coordinate my design with the exquisite details and color palette in the church while bringing a new flash of light to the worship space.

The rich, earthy wood color in the baldacchino accented with rust and gold provided a point of departure to present the new altar frontispiece in harmony with the current interior. As with all large works of art, the original design can have a life of its own and may guide the artist in new directions.

Time pondering the work at all stages of development is critical in deciding what is needed, what elements are to be changed or added and finally when the piece feels complete.

As mentioned, this Season of Creation altar frontispiece came quickly to my mind's eye and organically evolved as a symbolic panel representing our commitment to caring for our common home.  The IHS symbol, a symbol formed from the first three Greek letters of Jesus' name and later adopted as the emblem of the Jesuits, is held by the branches of the Tree of Life to remind us that we are all connected by our association with this Jesuit way of proceeding.

As a working artist and educator, I have "dressed" the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption for 25 years creating banners and environments that enhance the worship space, painted Byzantine style icons and transformed storage rooms into chapels adorned with mosaic glass windows and painted murals. My association with St. Ignatius church has been a life-long and intimate connection filled with graduations, funerals, Masses and now with my work. 

I am honored to have been asked to envision and create an altar frontispiece that feels invitational and inspirational for those who come  to worship here.  A vibrant parish community and a desire to honor the Creator with my gift of creativity made this work a joy.

Katie Wolf, parishioner, educator at St. Ignatius College Preparatory School