Richard Stephen Vosko is the 1994 recipient of the inter-faith Elbert M. Conover Award for his contributions to religious art and architecture. Architects who are members of the American Institute of Architects give the award to non-architects.  A priest of the Diocese of Albany, NY, Vosko has been working throughout the United States and Canada as a designer and consultant for worship environments since 1970.

In addition to the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels and other new church projects Vosko has been the consultant for a great number of cathedrals including those located in Seattle, WA, Colorado Springs, CO, San Antonio and Lubbock, TX, Memphis and Nashville, TN, Milwaukee and Superior, WI, Grand Rapids, MI, Rochester and Albany, NY. His projects continually receive national awards for historic preservation and excellence in liturgical design.

Since its inauguration, he has been serving as the worship space consultant for Synagogue 2000, a major project in which Conservative and Reformed Jewish congregations are involved in liturgical renewal. In this capacity he has provided direction to several new and old synagogues around the USA. He wrote the planning program for the restoration of the historic Central Synagogue in New York City. The 130 year old national landmark was damaged by fire in August, 1998.

Vosko belongs to the Societas Liturgica and is a founding member of the North American Academy of Liturgy. He is a past Board member of the Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art and Architecture, the Archives of Modern Christian Art, the Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions, The Liturgical Conference and the national planning committee for the Form/Reform Conferences on church architecture. He is also a member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Albany League of Arts, and the Albany Institute of History and Art.

Richard is a frequent lecturer in dioceses, colleges and universities on topics pertaining to art and architecture. His articles regularly appear in many scholarly journals and practical magazines. The title of his most recent publication is Designing Future Worship Spaces (Liturgy Training Publications, Chicago, IL, 1996).

Vosko has his Ph.D. and M.F.A. degrees from Syracuse University; an M.A. degree from the University of Notre Dame; a M.Div. degree from Christ the King Seminary; and his B.A. degree from St. Bonaventure University.

He believes that places for worship become sacred in the celebration of life-cycle events. In this sense the building is designed primarily to house the assembly and its worship of God. It is not an object of devotion by itself. The fundamental blueprint for the building is found in the memories and hopes of the community. Nevertheless, to evoke a sense of the sacred the building must be designed with attention to detail, scale, proportion, materials, color, illumination and acoustics. Whatever art and furnishings are employed must be of the highest caliber afforded by the community. Imagination is the main tool in any worship space project.

In Los Angeles, Father Vosko served as the liturgical and public art consultant for the Cathedral. In this capacity he created the master plan for all Cathedral art and then directed a process that commissioned 11 artists. During that time he worked closely with each artist in developing the theological, scriptural and metaphorical concepts for each work of art.