A+C’s advice and consultancy work
Laura Moffatt outlines an important part of A+C’s advice work and a number of works of art that are available for re-locating in a church or cathedral
One of the recent additions to Art and Christianity’s 100 Ecclesiart entries (available on the A+C website) is a small altar frontal by the internationally respected textile artist Theo Moorman (1907–1990). The frontal had been made for a side chapel in Gloucester Cathedral but after the installation of new windows by Thomas Denny the frontal was found to be overpowered by the glass and a decision was taken to remove it. Canon Andrew Bowden (and A+C member) was able to rescue the frontal and found a new home for it at St Mary, Syde in Gloucestershire. This new location proves to be a very happy marriage between the abstract design of irregular diamonds and triangles woven in muted colours centring on a star-like geometry and the quiet aesthetic of the stone surroundings and depiction of Mary in the window above.
More recently, in a RIBA Award- winning church re-build in Kirkleatham, Redcar, the architects Chance de Silva salvaged and re-used 1960s dalle de verre glass from a demolished church on the same site, breathing new life into what remained of this sometimes difficult to conserve medium.
As part of Art and Christianity’s ongoing advice work we are often approached by parishes or dioceses that are looking to relocate an artwork. The reasons for doing so can be very varied, sometimes even the unfortunate circumstance of a church closure. In recent weeks we have been asked to advise on the relocation of a set of linocut Stations of the Cross by Peter Wright from a church in the Diocese of Southwark, a painting of the crucifixion by William Narraway, and a very large wall hanging by the Australian textile artist Michael O'Connell. This summer I also travelled to Cambridge to ‘rescue’ a frontal made by my grandmother, Pamela Newton, (who studied with the preeminent ecclesiastical embroiderer, Beryl Dean). Made for the earlier incarnation of Fitzwilliam College Chapel it now no longer fits the altar in the lower chapel. My family and I would love to see this frontal have some further use in a church.
What follows are descriptions by those involved in seeking a new home for each of these works.
Peter Wright: The Stations of the Cross were commissioned by All Saints Battersea over 25 years ago. They were made in black and white linocut print and hung in simple black wooden frames. They place Jesus’s Passion in contemporary settings. The figure of Jesus is/could be anyone on the margins of society. They are deliberately stark and expressionistic and are designed to promote reflection on how we do or don't see Christ in our midst. They were put up in the church during Lent and used liturgically on Sundays during that period.
William Narraway, 1915 – 1979: Narraway was a significant post war portrait artist. His commissions embraced family portraits, leaders in business, theatre, music, schools, universities and the church (eg Donald Coggan, and Bishop Reindorp’s portrait hangs in the Cathedral Chapter House); and in his later years three commissions to paint Queen Elizabeth II, as well as one painting of Princess Anne. Portrait sculptures included heads of Sir Malcolm Sargent for the Festival Hall and Sir Adrian Boult.
His family has recently inherited two paintings that might appropriately be exhibited at Easter. One is a traditional Crucifixion, dated 1966, measuring 96 by 48 inches. Its depiction of soldiers at the foot of the Cross is a sombre, muted image that will particularly strike a chord in our current troubled times. It seems to say, ‘This is what we do when we go to war, we crucify Him again’.
The other painting, dated 1948, measuring 38 by 27 inches, is titled We of this Earth, humanity between the light and the dark. This painting is richly and finely detailed with crucifixion, church and light on one side, and descent on the other side (two figures carrying artillery shells) to the stygian gloom that extends across the foot of the canvas. The central figure represents humanity, the meeting ground for the yearning towards the light, and the downwards pull into the soil.
Pamela Newton, 1918 – 2004: In 1968, when Peter Nott (who went on to be Bishop of Norwich 1985–99) was Chaplain of Fitzwilliam College, the Chapel’s Laudian altar frontal was simply a bright yellow furnishing material. Wanting ‘more colour and interest’ he asked Pamela to embroider an abstract composition to its centre which she worked in blue, green and purple wools.
The central motif is 108cm wide by 58cm high and is in good condition. The frontal itself has damage to its corners but it would be suitable for cutting down to create a smaller frontal or fall.
Also pictured here are new interior doors between the church of St Botolph Aldgate, London, with a design by the artist Maciej Urbanek. A+C was instrumental in advising on this commission and is regularly consulted for similar commissions of new art in churches and cathedrals.
Anyone wishing to find out more is welcome to contact us at mail@artandchristianity.org.
Laura Moffatt is the director of A+C