Our Lady of the Last Winter Morning

I have a passion for images of the Virgin Mary, with and without the Christ child. I am sure it has much to do with the untold hours I spent on my knees praying to various statues of her when I was a child. Of course my prayers were fervent, but I also spent a lot of time studying her garments, the way she held herself, carried her arms, the expressions on her face.

This sweet garden statue stands behind a rather ordinary working class house on Staten Island, in New York – at least she did when I was there last, in March of 2009. It’s one of my favourite places to go on a “Mary hunt.” The day was cold, a brutal wind, but I was with a willing friend who undoubtedly thought the whole thing was absurd – but we had fun and Mary was pleased to pose for fans.