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In the churchyard of the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, a renovated statue of St. Aloysius welcomes the faithful from afar with its glow of various colors. Another statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was also restored.
Alfridas Pajuodis, a famous sculptor from Panevěž who was in charge of the restoration, believes that the sculptures were created by other artists, even though their authorship had been attributed to Bernardas Bučas for decades.
Residents of Panevėžys say that it was the Soviet era that was able to confuse everything, crush people’s fate with bulldozers and tamper with historical facts.
The author’s identity is questioned
Alfridas Pajuodis, a sculptor from Panevėžys, has just completed the restoration of the Heart of Jesus and the sculpture of St. Aloysius, which were built during the war.
“While collecting materials about the two sculptures, I first discovered that during the interwar period they were located behind the cemetery fence, near Smėlynė Street. They were moved to the cemetery already during the Soviet period,” says A. Pajuodis.
Another important point, or rather a hypothesis, raised by A. Pajuodis is that the authorship of these works may have been misattributed.
“I talked to people who give tours around Panevėžys and they claim that both sculptures are the creative legacy of Bernardo Buch. I would assert that one of them is most likely created by the sculptor Juozas Zikars, and the second one is most likely imported and created by a master living in southern Europe, probably Italy”, A. Pajuodis speculates.
A. Pajuodis, who has just restored the interwar sculptures of the Heart of Christ and St. Aloysius, thinks art historians should investigate the authorship of both works. Photo by G. Cattan.
It can be seen that the characteristics of southerners
A. Paiudice was concerned about the condition of these works of art and he drew Paiudice’s attention to the sculptures of the Heart of Jesus and St. Aloysius that stood in the churchyard, which had been affected by time and looked in a bad state.
The artist offered to return them to Reverend R. Zdani, who agreed.
Entering the great gate of the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul to the churchyard, the sculpture of St. Aloysius of Peter stands on the right, near the swings set up for little church visitors. It used to be plain, so it was unnoticeable. Now St. Aloysius has become bright and noticeable from a distance.
“You could say that the sculpture even looks kitsch. But it is kitsch in a way. Especially since it was created in such a colorful way”, emphasizes A. Pajuodis.
According to the sculptor, there are records that St. John Aloyza was created for Panevėžys by Bernardas Bučas.
“I would venture to assert that one of them was most likely created by the sculptor Yuzhas Tsikars, and the second was most likely imported and created by a master living in southern Europe, probably Italy.”
A. Pagiudice
A. Pajudis claims that this could not be the case, since the sculpture was made of sandstone, a material that Lithuanian interwar masters did not use at all.
In addition, residents of Panevěžsk claim to have discovered St. Aloyzas is not designed for our climate – there are places where there is accumulation of snow and meltwater.
In his opinion, this indicates that the sculpture was created by craftsmen from warmer countries and was most likely brought from there. This is not surprising – during the two world wars, Lithuanian churches purchased and transported sculptures created abroad in large quantities.
English stone. Church of St. Peter and Paul, patron saint of adolescents. Sculpture of Aloysius in new colors. Photo by G. Cattan.
Need art critic’s opinion
The sculpture of the Heart of Jesus restored by A. Pajuodis is also considered to be the work of B. Bučas, although there is no accurate information to confirm this.
The sculpture only has the year of its creation – 1933. English stone. The sculpture of Aloysius is carved from sandstone, and the heart of Jesus is cast in concrete. Professionals call it stamped concrete sculpture.
“Although the sculpture of the Heart of Jesus is considered to be the work of Bucci, I cannot see the style of this sculptor. For me, it is very similar to the sculpture of Christ the King by Juez Tsikalski, which stands in the Cathedral of Christ the King. So I dare to assume that the Sacred Heart of Jesus is also the work of this artist”, asserts A. Pajuodis.
The sculpture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus differs from that of St. Alosa in that it has never been painted and is pale in color.
According to A. Pajuodis, the two sculptures, which are nearly a century old since their creation, have been restored several times, but unfortunately not all of them were professional. It even took him a month to arrange the works of art perfectly.
Considering why the two sculptures mentioned above are still named as works of B. Bučo, A. Pajuodis said that there was a time when some people tried to undermine the authority of J. Zikar, which could cause confusion.
“The true authorship of these sculptures can be determined by art historians who have done extensive research. I have only made some assumptions”, says A. Pajuodis.
The Sacred Heart of Jesus sculpture was also restored. Photo by G. Catan.
Looks miserable
Rev. A. Zdanys stressed that the sculptures of St. Aloisus and the Heart of Jesus looked really pitiful, they were all crumbling, so he gladly accepted the sculptor’s offer to restore them. The priest said that a lot of effort was put into the restoration work, and the renovation of the sculptures cost the parish 3,000 euros.
According to the priest, the renovation of the tomb sculptures began after the restoration of the interior of St. Peter and Paul Church.
The copper roof awaits
Extensive maintenance work on the prayer room began seven years ago, when the old wooden church floor was replaced with a heated marble floor.
The church was repainted, the altar gilded, and a new white marble altar was built.
The organ has been repaired and the sacristan no longer has to pull the bell rope when calling the faithful to Mass, as the sound of the bells is controlled by a computer. The old staircase leading to the organ has been replaced for the convenience of the organist and members of the church choir.
The cemetery itself has changed too – the crumbling concrete path around the church has been replaced by a cobbled path. The huge thuja trees that surrounded the reserve have disappeared and yew trees now grow in their place.
According to Pastor R. Zdani, all these works have been invested with donations from believers of about 750,000 euros. The pastor’s next plan is to replace the church roof with copper. According to the clergy, these works have already been licensed and there is money.
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