Stephen Cox: St Anselm’s altar
Title: St Anselm’s altar
Artist: Stephen Cox (b. 1946, British)
Location: Canterbury Cathedral (C of E)
Date: 2005
Stephen Cox was the joint winner of the ACE Award for Art in a Religious Context in 2007/8 for this altar of Aosta marble. It was commissioned as a gift by the people of Aosta in Italy, the birthplace of St Anselm, who is buried in the chapel. The altar is simple and symmetrical, the dark green marble arranged with its white seams rising outwards from the centre.
Cox’s work is often interested in the process of transformation, and he has described sculpture in terms of a journey, even a pilgrimage. His idea of the ‘“transformational”’ in art – ‘that mundane materials through a sequence of actions are transformed into a whole different area of understanding’ – is of particular relevance in a religious context. Not only is it the case that, as Cox has suggested, his altars ‘have been subjected to the ritual of consecration are in consequence changed’; these altars speak to the transformative work of the Eucharist. The chair of the judging panel of the ACE Award, Marjorie Allthorpe-Guyton, described it as ‘an exemplar of a contemporary work which is conceptually formally wholly fit for purpose: the performance of the liturgy.’ In 2010 Cox also produced a holy water stoup for the Cathedral, the first to be installed since the Reformation.
Stephen Cox is known for pieces that have great symbolism rooted in history, tradition and faith. Cox’s study in historically important stone-carving centres has become central in informing the subject, material and style of the work he creates. He has exhibited internationally as well as having had solo shows at the Tate Gallery and the Dulwich Gallery. His work is included in the permanent collections of the Tate Gallery, the British Museum, the Ludwig Collection (Cologne) and the Uffizi (Florence).
Further Information
Medium: Aosta marble
Permanent display
See Stephen Cox’s St Anselm’s altar on the Ecclesiart map here.
Commissioner: Gift from the people of the Region of the Valley of Aosta, Italy
Other artworks in churches by Stephen Cox: Altar and reredos, St Paul, Harringay; Adam and Eve, St Luke’s, Chelsea; Eucharist, Cathedral of St Nicholas, Newcastle-upon-Tyne; holy water stoup, Canterbury Cathedral.
Other works of modern and contemporary art in Canterbury Cathedral: Transport (2011), Antony Gormley; Scenes from the Life of Saint Martin of Tours (altarpiece) (1928–33), Winifred Knights; statue of Christ on his throne (1990), Christ Church gate, Klaus Ringwald; Becket altar and sculpture (1986), Giles Blomfield; windows (1959), St Anselm’s Chapel, Harry Stammers; windows (1960), southeastern transept, Ervin Bossanyi, holy water stoup (2010), Stephen Cox.