Vincent Maragliotti Murals
Mural preservation & restoration by EverGreene Architectural Arts
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THE RESTORATION IS COMPLETE
THE VICTORY THEATRE MURALS ARE IN HOLYOKE
HOLYOKE, MA - MIFA Victory Theatre is excited to announce the Victory Theatre’s historic murals restoration project is complete. Expert restorationists Evergreene Architectural Arts of New York City fully restored the two 23-feet-tall Vincent Maragliotti WPA murals on April 8, 2024. Evergreen’s team moved the murals back to Holyoke masterfully implementing and overseeing their protective storage where they will await reinstallation. The mural's completion is a key step in bringing us closer to a reopened theater. A future public exhibition of the completed murals is in development, stay tuned.
“What a wonderful achievement for MIFA and the City of Holyoke. A significant piece of the city’s history has been preserved for future generations. The mural restoration represents a terrific cooperation between MIFA and the Community Preservation Act Committee, among other donors, and a special shoutout should go to Kip Foley and Meagan Magrath (CPA Committee Chairs), and their committees, and to Michael J. Sullivan for making this happen.”
- Don Sanders, MIFA Executive Artistic Director
2023 Victory Theatre Mural Exhibit at Wistariahurst Museum
This muralist lifted Holyoke’s spirits during World War II; the fight today is to bring his works back to life, By Dennis Hohenberger | Special to The Republican, Updated: Mar. 10, 2023, 11:31 a.m. | Published: Mar. 08, 2023, 6:41 p.m., Masslive.com
The Victory Theatre Murals (1942) - Approx. 10ft wide x 21ft tall, painted by Vincent Maragliotti of Maragliotti Studios, Grand Central Terminal Building, NYC.
"The murals are the work of the noted New York artist, Vincent Maragliotti, who supervised the decorative treatment of the Victory Theatre’s interior after the January 26, 1942 fire. Maragliotti explained that the descriptive representation of the murals is purely symbolic:
The panel on the left
"Depicts war and was inspired by the biblical story of Lucifer, cast out of heaven, venting his vengeance and evil upon mankind. It suggests that the horrible turmoil of the present-day throughout the world marks the approach of the climax, which can result only in either complete victory or complete defeat. Mars, the symbol of war, directs with sword in hand, employing his destructive agents of hate and insinuation. A crouching old figure represents the force that incites discord. The planet Mars, abode of its symbolized king, resembles an erupting volcano. The gigantic picture illustrates the doom that will be his unless he experiences a spiritual awakening.
The panel on the right
"Represents Victory. Man has broken his bonds and has been made free by the spirit of Justice. Lucifer is banished into oblivion. Peace has brought her blessings and Liberty once more reigns. The blessings of Liberty, Peace, and Justice are again bestowed upon humanity." –Holyoke Transcript-Telegram, Aug. 13, 1941.
Vincent Maragliotti
Born in Italy and emigrated to the U.S. at age seventeen, Vincent Maragliotti studied at the National Academy of Design, NY, and the Cooper Union Art College in NY.
Part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA)/ Federal Art Project (FAP) under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal, Maragliotti’s first commission was of the main entrance lobby of the Pennsylvania Education Building, which he completed in 1934.
Other works
Theaters
Roxy Theater, NY
Majestic, NY
Shubert, NY
Strand, NY
Hotels
Waldorf‐Astoria, NY
Biltmore, NY
Sherry-Netherland, NY
The Lexington, NY
Copley Plaza Hotel, MA
Murals and Artwork
Finance Building, PA
The State Museum of Pennsylvania/William Penn Memorial Building, PA
St. Martin of Tours Church, NY
Stock Exchange Luncheon Club, NY
Jesse Jones Gulf Building, Houston, TX
State capitols of Texas and Washington.
In 2010 MIFA was awarded a grant by the National Trust for Historic Preservation – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Fund for Historic Interiors to safely take down the Maragliotti murals for preservation and storage.
The MIFA Victory Theatre Mural Restoration Project is being funded in part by the Citizens of Holyoke, MA through the Community Preservation Act
