From: New Mexico | Medium: Hand-carved and painted wood sculptures Roberto Cardinale was born in Pueblo Colorado. He has a BA in mathematics and philosophy, earned while he was yet in Benedictine orders. His MA is from the University of Northern Colorado and his doctorate in Art Education from Arizona State University. Roberto builds his expressionistic representations of ecclesiastical edifices with patient dedication. His repertoire includes churches and synagogues from Arizona, California, New Mexico, Texas, England, Greece, Italy, Mexico and Spain. They are artistic expressions rather than precise replicas. The church form speaks to Roberto’s love of ecclesiastical architecture and springs from his travels and monastic background as a cloistered monk. His churches are built in various sizes of pine and are richly painted and gilded. Generally, they are about 12” wide, 16” high and of variable length. He began this particular expression of his craftsmanship in 1985. He invests from 60-90 creative hours on each piece. Roberto prefers to designate his work as sculptures rather than models. He strives to capture the spirit, age and beauty of each building, whether real or perceived. Roberto has created over 400 unique pieces and welcomes commissions of clients’ beloved religious buildings from favorite locales of their life experiences or travels.