Church chooses artful way to highlight Lent
A unique way to mark the season of Lent, the six weeks which precede Easter, is being planned by a tiny village church. The Friends of St Michaels, Discoed, which although just in Wales is part of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford, have commissioned fourteen(14) different artists to produce an artwork for the church of St Michael in the hamlet.
Each artist will produce an interpretation of one of the 14 scriptural Stations of the Cross, each of which is based on a Biblical text describing Jesus going through the torture that led to his death. They will be arranged around the walls of the church in chronological order.
“This will be a unique opportunity to see and buy art by leading professional artists whilst supporting the human rights charity 'Freedom from Torture' whose patrons include Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Dame Helen Mirren, Michael Palin and Sir Simon Rattle,” said David Hiam, the organiser of the event. “The art will be on display from Shrove Tuesday on the 21st February right through until Easter Monday on the 9th April.”
The church also has music events planned to complement the exhibition culminating in a performance of Haydn’s “The Seven Last Words of Christ” performed by violinist Marcia Crayford with young professionals from Sinfonia Cymru on Holy Saturday, the evening before Easter Sunday.
“We’re already preparing a catalogue of the paintings for which Professor Frances Spalding CBE, the art historian and biographer, will write the critique,” added David. “Proceeds from the sale of catalogues and the sales commission on the artwork will go to 'Freedom from Torture'.”
One of the artists is Charles McCarthy, who has contributed his interpretation of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas. "By its very nature the exhibition meant stepping outside the usual range of each artist's work and linking the exhibition to the charity Freedom from Torture gives it a contemporary twist and a different emphasis," he said.
The Rector, Stephen Hollinghurst, commented, "I'm used to Discoed staging very high quality arts events, but this is the first time we've overtly made the connection between the Visual Arts and the Gospel and it's very exciting to see the way the village church, the community, the artists and musicians have all caught the vision for what will, I know, be a challenging and moving series of events."
Freedom from Torture is a British registered charity which solely treats torture survivors. Since it was established in 1985, over 50,000 people have been referred to the organisation for help. It provides medical and psychological documentation of torture, a range of therapies and practical advice and support. It trains health professionals and others throughout the UK to work with torture survivors. Most importantly, Freedom from Torture is a place where survivors' experiences are recognised and where they can safely express their grief while working towards recovery.
Note to Editors:Press are welcome at the preview evening on 17th February from 6pm or by arrangement at other times. The Catalogue will be available from17th February
A Jpeg of one of the works is available on request from Anni Holden.
For more information please contact Anni Holden see below or Sally Butler 01547 560226
Inserting names into a Search Engine should bring up all artists involved in this unique exhibition. The list of artists involved is:
John Clarke
Charles MacCarthy
Susannah Hanbury-Tennyson
Carolyn Blake
Simon Dorrell
Anthea Stilwell
Alison Neal.
Dan MacCarthy
Caroline Hands
Nicky Hopwood
Julienne Braham
Andrea Mclean
Richard Bavin
Lois Hopwood