I'm Grace Gerhardt, and I'm a junior at Covenant College. I'd like to 1) share about an incredible opportunity the Lord has provided and 2) invite you to partner with me in pursuing it through your prayers and financial support. In May 2026, I'll be traveling to Rome, Italy to study the history of art in the church. On this trip, I'll examine the relationship between art and the Christian faith throughout history and learn about how they have shaped each other and how believers interact with them today.

Rome was the historical center of the Christian church from the reign of Constantine in the 4th century until the Reformation in the mid 16th century. Throughout all of history, God's people have utilized art to communicate truth, build up the church, and propose different interpretations of Scripture. From catacombs to cathedrals, Rome's rich artistic Christian heritage provides insight into the church's complex relationship with visual culture.

This May, I'll be traveling with a group of about 15 Covenant students and our art history professor. The framework for our trip is a course called Art and the Church. Within this course, we will explore how theology and society have formed how the Church has understood art's function in the context of public and private religion. We'll focus mainly on Roman Catholicism and western Protestantism, and we'll also examine some examples from Eastern churches and from artists working in specific non-western contexts. We will explore churches and artifacts from over a 1500 year period. Classes will primarily be held on site at archaeological sites, museums, and churches, and we will also spend a couple of days in Florence.

I'm hoping that this trip help me more clearly see God's hand throughout history. As an artist, I hope that learning about how Christians have integrated faith and art in the past will inform my practice today. After college, I hope to be a children's book illustrator. I think examining how Christian themes and biblical characters have been depicted in the past would inform my own depictions of Christian imagery. I also hope that engaging past visual Christian culture will help me better engage current art. Overall, through this trip I seek to grow as a believing artist, becoming more faithful to Scripture both in heart and practice.

If you would like to donate via check, put "Grace Gerhardt's Italy Trip" in the memo line, and mail it to this address:

Grace Gerhardt

Box 238

14049 Scenic Hwy

Lookout Mt., GA

30750