Apr 26, 2016 Spot check: Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
When my wife and I visited Italy years ago, we visited the duomo in every city. There was mind-blowing architecture and art that would make the biggest Slayer fan get on his or her knees. They were also bustling centers of each city’s culture, commerce, and, well, churchgoing.
But, like most people, we are terrible tourists in our own hometown of Los Angeles. I hadn’t visited the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels until this weekend when we attended a wedding there. The 3,000 seat church, which opened in 2002, was practically empty and so were the grounds around it except for a handful of regulars lighting the votive candles.
The adobe-style surfacing and bells along the Temple Street wall are intended to reference the missionary outposts that form El Camino Real but, to me, the style also recalls ’80s industrial parks or perhaps the arena where the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim play hockey.
At the entrance, 25-ton bronze doors contrast with a contemporary version of the Virgin Mary at the entrance. The lengthy entry leads visitors past a series of contemporary paintings of California Missions on to the way to chambers that spotlight the site’s history and house the requisite relics. Because we were attending a wedding on a tight schedule, we didn’t have time to visit the mausoleum on the lower level.
The epic 17th-century Spanash retablo seems to be the oldest thing in the cathedral, sharply contrasting with the rather modern Baptismal Font made out of smooth granite. The depicted saints along the walls provide a contrast of the old and new, as well, painted in distressed style on tapestries that look more like drapes.
The pulpit itself is grand and lit by massive windows. In contrast to us tiny humans, a grand pipe organ levitates over a corner wall and the acoustics are quite good for such a huge, cavernous space with a ceiling that ranges from 80-100 feet high. For a church, it feels more grand than mega despite its modern feel–perhaps because the use of technology isn’t in your face with big screens, lights, and speakers.
I preferred the exterior, perhaps because of the more playful elements. Our Lady of Guadalupe is familiar to most Angelenos, because we see her painted on the sides of buildings, airbrushed onto low riders, and hanging from rear-view mirrors in the form of air fresheners. I rather enjoyed seeing her under the architectural form of the Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts, which peers over the wall like a gigantic robot about to attack.
There’s also a children’s garden with sculptures of Biblical animals. I imagine this spot provides the most shade on a hot afternoon. I wonder if the church is receptive to flatland BMX or skateboarding? The plaza is as immaculate as it is expansive.
The cathedral is an epic statement of Catholic faith, an unquestionable accomplishment in terms of architectural scale and earthquake proofing, and an undeniable landmark of Downtown L.A. It’s also lovely site for a wedding ceremony and memorable location for a funeral service. Maybe an uplifting place to be on a Sunday morning, too. But I think you can cross it off your list as place to take most visitors.
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