pop culture
Musician Katy Perry also sported enormous cross earrings in her music video “Unconditionally,” which really isn’t anything new in the music world with Madonna spinning a career out of provocation entwined with her faith. Just think back to her “Like a Virgin” days and making out with a black Jesus during her “Like a Prayer” heydey.
artistic sphere
In the art world, the cross has appeared across countless artworks including Christ Crucified by Diego Velázquez, The Crucified Christ with the Virgin Mary, Saints and Angels (The Mond Crucifixion) by Raphael, The Lamentation over the Dead Christ by Rembrandt van Rijn, Christ of St John of the Cross by Salvador Dalí and countless others. Also notable are works by The Master of the Blue Crucifixes, an Italian artist associated with the Basilica of San Francesco d’Assisi and a possible assistant of Giunta Pisano.
The Imperial Orb of the Holy Roman Empire, one instance of the globus cruciger, is part of the Imperial Regalia and there are virtually endless renditions of the heavily bejewelled crux gemmata works of art. These blinged out crosses first emerged with Early Christian and Early Medieval art. Some of the most notable examples are the Cross of Justine II, Cross of Lothair, Victory Cross, Cross of Cong and the Iberian Cross of the Angels.