Fr. Patrick van der Vorst: Patrick van der Vorst is a Roman Catholic priest for the Diocese of Westminster, London. Patrick was born and raised in Bruges, Belgium. He attended a Benedictine boarding school near Ghent, studying Latin-Greek before obtaining his Masters in Law at the University of Leuven. In 1995, at age 24, Patrick moved to London where has lived and worked ever since. 

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Before being ordained to the priesthood in June 2023, Patrick was a former Director of Sotheby’s Europe and worked 25 years in the art world. He worked at Sotheby’s in Bond Street, London, from 1995 till 2010, as an auctioneer and Head of the Furniture Department, where he sold the collections of the Duke & Duchess of Windsor, Elton John and Turn & Taxis.  Full bio.

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Presentation title and synopsis:  “The Art of Believing”. 

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This presentation will explore how creating art is more than an act of mere human skill—it is a sharing in God’s own creativity, a joyful participation in His work of shaping and embellishing the world. Beginning with key Old Testament passages that have inspired Christian art for centuries, the talk then turns to Jesus himself, the master storyteller, who through parables painted unforgettable images upon the minds and hearts of his listeners. Finally, we will journey through the insights of some of the Catholic Church’s greatest theologians, who have shown how Beauty (alongside Truth and Goodness) leads us straight to God.

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Duncan G. Stroik is a practicing architect, author, and Professor of Architecture at the University of Notre Dame. His award-winning work includes Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Chapel in California, the Chapel of the Holy Cross in Tampa, and Christ Chapel at Hillsdale College.

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A frequent lecturer on sacred architecture and the classical tradition, Stroik has authored The Church Building as a Sacred Place: Beauty, Transcendence and the Eternal. Mr. Stroik is an inaugural member of the Society for Catholic Liturgy and founding editor of Sacred Architecture Journal. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia and the Yale University School of Architecture.

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Stroik.com

 

Presentation title: "American Renaissance in the Arts"

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James C. McCrery, II AIA, NCARB  is the founding principal of McCrery Architects, PLLC, a firm committed to the design of churches, civic and university buildings, and unique commissions for clients desiring rich, legible meaning incorporated into their buildings. He is a member of the faculty of the School of Architecture and Planning at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC where he is the founding Director of the Concentration in Classical Architecture and Urbanism.  

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Mr. McCrery was recently hired by President Donald Trump to design the new ballroom at the White House Full bio

 

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Presentation title: "Over Representational Art"

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Dr. Barbara Nicolosi, is an award-winning writer, speaker, professor and producer. She has spoken at hundreds of conferences, universities, and churches.  She is the featured host on the Mystagogy podcast. With 23 years of experience working in Hollywood as a writer and producer,  Dr. Nicolosi speaks about the intersection of faith and culture, the role of art and beauty in the Church and world, and how to engage the secular mainstream with Gospel themes.

Dr. Nicolosi is a member of the Writers Guild of America-West she has written screenplays for several Hollywood production companies including The Last Supper. (2025),  Fatima (2020), directed by Marco Pontecorvo and starring Harvey Keitel and Sonia Braga.   Full bio

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Presentation title: "Acts of Hope: Beauty and Sacred Art in the Church"

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Dr. Mark Nowakowski, is an award winning composer whose works represent a thoughtful merger of bold expression and mystical contemplation, Slavic pathos and American individualism. His music has been commissioned and performed globally by such notables as the Kronos Quartet, the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, the Silesian Quartet, Three Notch’d Road, Composers Inc, His Majesty’s Men, cellist Jeffrey Zeigler, Orkiestra Camerata Stargard, The Cleveland Chamber Choir, Band of Voices, Stowarzyszenia Mozart, Chor Omnia of Slovakia, the Soni Spatium festival, the Canton Symphony, Vox Musica of Sacramento, the “Chaps” Choir of Poland, the Choir of the Shrine of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, the choirs of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the Cracow Brass Quintet, and many others. He currently serves as the composer in residence for His Majesty’s Men, and the director and producer of the Vos Omnes Virtual Choir.

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Full bio

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Presentation title: "Beauty Discernment & The Creative Imperative: The Dignity of the Vocation of the Sacred Artist"

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​​​​David Riccio, is one of the principals of Canning Liturgical Arts, a division of John Canning & Co., and has helped lead the company for over 25 years.

 

As a Professional Associate of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and an Association for Preservation Technology (APT) Recognized Professional, he is an industry-recognized expert on historic flat and ornamental plaster as well as decorative painting techniques, gilding, and glazing and has developed multiple innovative solutions for complex restoration conditions.

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David has been committed to preserving and restoring beauty in Catholic churches throughout his career. His planning and project management skills keep projects on track and on budget and he has overseen large-scale projects such as the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse, WI, the restoration of St. Marys in New Haven, CT, and the conservation of The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Hanover PA.

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Presentation title: "Reviving Beauty Through Decoration: A Craftsman's Perspective on Renovation & Restoration"

                 

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Q & A MODERATOR

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William Newton is a critic, commentator, and public speaker with a variety of interests in the art world. He is a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, the University of Notre Dame Law School, and Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London. He lives in Washington, D.C.

He has served as an art critic for the American edition of The Spectator magazine, as well as for the online magazine The Federalist, and his work has appeared in Aleteia, The Catholic Herald (UK), and Patheos, among other publications. As a public speaker, he has addressed academic, professional, and religious institutions around the U.S.,and appeared on numerous podcasts. He is currently finishing his first book, which
deals with artistic and cultural observations drawn from his travels in Spain.