Les Gisants en Lumière by Gael Mooney

In 1992, deeply impressed by the black and white photographs published in a book by Jean-François Noël and Pierre Jahan devoted to the recumbent figures in Saint-Denis Cathedral Basilica, Gael Mooney travelled to France to contemplate and paint them in situ.

When she arrived, she was surprised to discover not only the recumbent figures that had initially captivated her attention, but also the entire building, whose exceptional luminosity immediately struck her. Deeply moved by the aesthetic and symbolic significance of this light, she felt an irrepressible need to bear witness to it through her painting.

Thirty years after that first seminal encounter, this exhibition pays tribute to the intimate and lasting relationship that has developed between an artist and her favourite place, offering a unique perspective on this sacred monument. Organised both chronologically and thematically, "Les Gisants en lumière" retraces Gael Mooney's artistic journey through the crypt's various chapels, each illustrating a stage in the development of his work, in resonance with the spiritual and symbolic dimension of light.

Driven by the desire to rediscover the celestial vision that inspired Abbot Suger when he was building the first choir in Gothic architecture, Gael Mooney draws her inspiration from the writings of Pseudo-Denys the Areopagite, a Syrian monk from the VIᵉ century, for whom light is the very embodiment of divine beauty. For the artist, this process of spiritual illumination manifests itself in the transparent yet ephemeral colours reflected in the stained glass windows, which continually transform the interior space of the cathedral - a transformation she strives to capture in her work.

Working from direct observations inside the cathedral, Gael Mooney seeks to reveal the symbolic and spiritual dimension of light, the anagogic process that allows our spirit to rise from the material world to the spiritual world, from the earthly world to the celestial world, to commune with the divine.

When she is not in France, Gael Mooney lives in New York, where she regularly exhibits at the Bowery Gallery. Gael Mooney holds an M.F.A. from the New York Academy of Art and is the author of art criticism and essays exploring the relationship between art, philosophy and religion, subjects she has also taught and lectured on, notably in 2024 at the Basilica of Saint-Denis as part of the European Heritage Days. Gael Mooney's artistic involvement in the Basilica has been the subject of radio (RTL) and television (France 3) broadcasts, and has also attracted media attention in the United States.