Photo I just took of the St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in Millvale, just a couple blocks away from where I live. The murals are semi famous and painted by Maxo Vanka. The murals depict Christ and Mary in images of war and offer social commentary on world events like fascism, war, and poverty. Murals painted before the war depict Croatian immigrants coming to America to seek a better life, grateful to have escaped the slaughter taking place in their homeland. This was Vanka's "Mothers offer up their sons for labor" theme, a tribute to all those who worked diligently in the mills and mines in and around Pittsburgh. One mural depicts the fire and collapse of one of the coal burning mills and as a Croatian mother cradles her dead son, her other three sons rush into the mill to save their fellow workers and are killed. A committed pacifist, the intensity of Vanka's beliefs are depicted clearly in post-war murals. One is of the Virgin Mary coming between two warring soldiers. Another depicts two soldiers battling each other, yet this time it is Jesus who attempts to intercede and one of the soldiers accidentally thrusts his bayonet into Jesus' heart.
AF5_9162 by
photolitherland, on Flickr
AF5_9158 by
photolitherland, on Flickr