The Universal Sacred Art

the perception of the sensitive in the image of Our Lady of Aparecida

Abstract

The article aims at the semiotic analysis of sacred art in the contemporary times and a contribution in the question of how to read a work of art. It is the understanding of a religious phenomenon that has crossed two millennia of history and that has been following the evolution of Christianity through the ages. This is Mary, also known as Virgin Mary, Our Lady and Mother of God, among other titles. From the Book of Revelation, chapter 12, we will deal with the work of art of the Virgin Immaculate Conception located in the basilica of Aparecida. With the help of some current theorists in liturgy, art, semiology, symbology, phenomenology and the studies of the italian Gio Lomazzo, from the 16th century, let's decode its meaning. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate the strong relationship towards a common objective: the artistic elaboration and how art helps believers, either by the catechization capacity or by the elevation of the spirit that sacred art intentionally provokes.