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Our Rich History: The unknown muralist of St. Augustine’s emerges from the shadows


By Stephen Enzweiler
Special to the NKyTribune

(Part 5 of a five-part series on the history of St. Augustine Parish, Covington)

It is rare in the art world to have masterful murals and religious works decorating sacred spaces and not know who the artist was. But for nearly a century, such has been the case with the church murals of St. Augustine in the Peaselburg neighborhood of Covington. The St. Augustine murals are some of the more well-known and noteworthy examples of church mural art from the early part of the 20th century. Three murals thought to be by William Blank decorate the lower apse behind the main altar. But a greater body of work can be seen above in the apse dome, in the sanctuary and in the transepts, along with thirteen wall medallions depicting evangelists and saints throughout the church proper. As masterful in their execution as any ecclesiastical work by Lippert, Duveneck or Svendsen, the identity of this muralist has eluded historians for almost a century.

St. Augustine sanctuary and transepts, showing Braasch’s historic murals. (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

St. Augustine is arguably one of the finest examples of the highly decorated style of late Romanesque Revival church architecture still standing among us. Built in 1914 during the episcopacy of Bishop Maes, it belongs to that era of church building in America when communities strove to keep up with the growth of their immigrant populations. Nearly every community in Covington had its own church, with its own saint and its own identity, and each sought to fill their church with beautiful art.

Art reflected man’s concept of the divine in symbol and story, and it had the ability to attract and catechize people with lessons of the sacred. The mural form was the ideal choice for this purpose, because murals – whether in fresco or oil – were a large visual medium that could attract a principally visual audience. Church muralists were a specialty occupation then, because they had to be part Michelangelo and part theologian with the capacity to create and deliver large scale mural projects, while at the same time translating and expressing the divine through art.

At the time of its dedication, St. Augustine’s interior was relatively undecorated. Photographs from its 1920 Jubilee booklet show a spacious, handsome church interior, but with large, blank wall areas absent of any art. In those early years, its pastor, Rev. William F. Kathmann, had devoted much of his energies to building and growing its school. But with his death in March 1926, the guiding hand of the parish passed quietly to the Rev. Charles A. Woeste. Fr. Woeste would serve as its pastor for the next 31 years and oversee most of the sweeping artistic changes in the decoration of the church.

Rev. Charles A. Woeste, who hired Braasch in 1927. (Courtesy of Stephen Enzweiler)

By the end of his first year as pastor, Fr. Woeste began making plans for a major renovation and upgrading of St. Augustine’s buildings. Much of the work was out of necessity, such as the usual repairs to roofs, foundations, plumbing and electrical wiring. There was also a broken pipe organ that needed replacing. But his parish staff pressed him hard on the issue of decorating the church interior with new art. Woeste’s first act was to appoint a committee to oversee the project, and bids subsequently went out for the proposed work.

As contractors were hired to commence the work, the question of who would create the church’s new art remained unanswered. Yet, newly discovered correspondence between Fr. Woeste and Bishop Howard tells clearly about a man who came to St. Augustine Church in 1927 with a proposal to paint the church’s long-desired murals. He likely came with samples of his work, probably a portfolio of photographs, along with ample references who could be called upon if necessary. There would have been across-table discussions about subjects to be portrayed and where each mural would be placed in the church. In the end, Fr. Woeste must’ve liked what he saw, because on May 27, 1927, he took up his pen and wrote a letter to Bishop Howard.

The apse dome with “Christ the King.” (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

“The necessity of having the interior of St. Augustine Church painted and decorated is becoming more apparent from day to day,” he began, “and . . . our people are literally clamoring for the frescoing of the church, which will cost approximately $10,000.00 dollars. Mr. Theodore Brasch [sic] of Cincinnati has submitted specifications, which I shall be pleased to submit to your Lordship whenever convenient. May we have your kind permission, Dear Bishop, to go ahead with this new project?”

In his reply letter of June 22nd, the Bishop wrote: “I have considered your letter of May 27th requesting permission to expend ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for the purpose of decorating and painting the interior of St. Augustine’s Church. The permission you request . . . is hereby granted, and I trust your artist will produce results that will stimulate the piety of your good people.”

Theodore Braasch was not an unfamiliar name around Cincinnati. He was the same artist who had worked with Leon Lippert painting Sacred Heart Church in Bellevue, Kentucky in 1923–24. He is most often referred to as being from Cincinnati, but in reality, Braasch was not from Cincinnati at all, but only lived here while working with Lippert. He actually resided in Kansas City, Missouri. Records of his early days paint a picture of a furiously busy artist, always traveling to another city to paint or decorate churches and never seeming to be without employment. Among his most known early works are his famous murals of St. Elizabeth Church in Pocohontas, Va., and those of St. Joseph’s Church in Kay County, Oklahoma, and another St. Joseph’s Church in St. George, Kansas. By the time he came to Northern Kentucky to paint Sacred Heart Church, Theodore Braasch was already the most well-known church artist west of St. Louis.

“The Lord gathering the little children.” (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

He was born Theodore Heinrich Adolphe Braasch on Sept. 24, 1881 in Preetz, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Little is known of his upbringing, except for a 1927 newspaper article stating that he was educated in Berlin, Germany and also in Munich at the Royal Academy where Frank Duveneck once studied. Later, he worked in Rome and in other European cities before deciding to immigrate to America. He brought with him a sophisticated technique and a knowledge of the academic method which can be seen in all his works.

From the time he arrived in the United States, Theodore Braasch seemed to always be on the move. Records show that after he arrived in 1904, he was living in Newark, New Jersey making his living as a church artist. Many church artists of the day knew one another and often passed work or knowledge of church jobs to their friends; thus it is possible he may have known William Blank, who at the time also worked in Newark with his father as a church painter. But within a few years, Braasch left the east coast and headed west to Kansas City, where he quickly set up his studio and continued working as a church artist.

Kansas presented a host of new opportunities for an ecclesiastical artist in 1910. As eastern cities grew and artists sought those jobs, the Plains states were experiencing somewhat of their own renaissance. Throughout the region, Catholic churches were springing up in cities like Omaha, Kansas City, Tonkawa, and Lincoln with few ecclesiastical artists to call upon. Within a few years, Braasch’s work made him known far and wide as one of the pre-eminent ecclesiastical artists of the day. In Kay County, Oklahoma, he was lauded as a “famous mural artist” and in St. George, Kansas, the newspaper there remarked that his work ranked their church as “one of the nicest in the state.”

“The wedding of the Blessed Mother & St. Joseph.” (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

In 1914, 33-year-old Theodore Braasch married Julia Agnes Waters, an attractive New Orleans-born artist in her own right and two years his junior. With Julia at his side, Theodore continued to work. It was common for church artists to travel widely and Braasch was no exception. Directories and newspaper articles from the period show that he was constantly on the move, traveling to distant cities and engaged in decorating churches, painting murals, restoring Stations of the Cross, statues, and even painting portraits. Unique to Theodore Braasch was his stenciling of church walls in cream and brown tones in a decorative tile banding made to look like real Italian mosaics. Integrated into the stencils were Christian symbols of the Sacred Heart, Fleur-de-lis and crosses. Beneath would be brick patterns, outlined and flourished with delicate fleur-de-lis in each corner.

How Theodore Braasch and Leon Lippert met is unknown. There is no record of Braasch being in Cincinnati prior to 1922. But in that year, the Cincinnati Directory lists him living west of downtown at 1826 Esmonde Street with his wife Julia and daughter Louise. At this time, Braasch and Lippert begin to work together on the murals at Sacred Heart Church in Bellevue, Kentucky. During the work, he moved to 1604 Harrison Avenue, perhaps to be closer to the job. But by September 1924, the work was finished and Braasch left Cincinnati and returned home to Kansas City.

“The Ascension of the Lord” (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

It is likely their acquaintance and work together at Sacred Heart Church set the stage for the Kansas muralist to return to Northern Kentucky a few years later. Exactly how Braasch found out about the St. Augustine opportunity is unknown, because newspaper accounts show he was in Oklahoma painting church murals. St. Augustine’s pastor, Fr. Woeste, may have approached Lippert first; but when it became known he was unavailable (he was painting Stations at St. John the Baptist in Wilder), it follows Lippert may simply have recommended Braasch.

From what we know, Theodore Braasch began the St. Augustine murals in the late summer of 1927. In all, his original plan included the following works: The Nativity of the Lord (east transept); The Lord gathering the little children (sanctuary, St. Joseph’s side); The wedding of the Blessed Mother & St. Joseph (sanctuary, Blessed Virgin Mary side); The Ascension of the Lord (west transept); Christ the King (apse dome); The angels praising the Lord (sanctuary arch). During the recent renovations, stenciling that bears the unmistakable imprint of Braasch’s artistry was also found beneath layers of paint and acoustic tiles. And when the last bit of paint had dried and the work was finished, Theodore Braasch disappeared from the record in Cincinnati, only to reappear in, of all places, Hollywood, California.

“The Nativity of the Lord.” (Photo by Stephen Enzweiler)

What brought Theodore Braasch to the City of Angels is unknown, but evidence suggests it may simply have been for the added opportunities it afforded him to work. It was a time when the motion picture industry was growing, people were moving there in droves, and churches were being built. Records show he was always self-employed, and he traveled extensively up and down the west coast for the next twenty years painting churches. He belonged to St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Hollywood and in later years became well-known at St. Elizabeth’s Church in Pasadena for his outdoor Christmas tableaux depicting events in the life of the Christ Child. His one profound grief came on September 19, 1941, when his beloved Julia died suddenly at age 52. He never remarried.

And just like the St. Augustine murals whose artist was unknown for many years, so also is the ending of Theodore Braasch’s story. No information about his last years has been found and the record of his passing is still unknown. But from today on, may he continue to live in the memory of the people of St. Augustine Parish, for to them he has left the treasure of his priceless ecclesiastical art, which will require more study and continued research for years to come.

Stephen Enzweiler is a historian and a longtime writer for Our Rich History. He is the Cathedral Historian and Archivist at the Cathedral Basilica in Covington.

We want to learn more about the history of your business, church, school, or organization in our region (Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, and along the Ohio River). If you would like to share your rich history with others, please contact the editor of “Our Rich History,” Paul A. Tenkotte, at tenkottep@nku.edu. Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is Professor of History and Gender Studies at Northern Kentucky University (NKU) and the author of many books and articles.


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