An Art Trail has been created for the Barking Episcopal Area by commission4mission with funding from London-over-the-Border.
The
Art Trail aims to raise awareness of the rich and diverse range of
modern and contemporary arts and crafts from the last 100 years which
can be found within the 36 featured churches. The significant works of
art in these churches, taken collectively, represent a major
contribution to the legacy of the church as an important commissioner of
art.
The
Rt. Revd. David Hawkins, Bishop of Barking, has said: “For centuries
the Arts have been an important medium through which public
communication of the faith has taken place and the Church has had a
lengthy and happy marriage with the Arts.”
The Art Trail demonstrates
that this long relationship between the Church and the Arts continues
today, as the Trail includes work by significant twentieth century
artists such as Eric Gill, Hans Feibusch, John Hutton and John Piper
together with contemporary work by the like of Mark Cazalet, Jane Quail
and Henry Shelton.
Click here to Download Art Trail guide
Those interested in the artworks and churches featured on the Art Trail will also be interested to see the following:
- The Good Samaritan, engraved window by John Hutton at St George's Barkingside (Woodford Avenue/Gants Hill Crescent, Barkingside. Contact: Revd Benjamin Wallis. Tel: 020 8550 4149);
- Life of St Augustine, cast concrete achitectural frieze by Steven Sykes at Holy Trinity & St Augustine of Hippo, Leytonstone (Holloway Road, Leytonstone. Contact: Revd Ian Harker.); and
- People praising God and giving grace received to others, sculpted oak panels by Jane Quail at St Paul's East Ham (Burges Road, East Ham E6 2EU. Contact: Rev. Merrin Playle. Tel: 020 8472 5531)
- Virgin and Child / St Francis / St Ethelburga / Heavenly Jerusalem: three long west lancet windows by John Lawson (1932 – 2009) in 1992 – one of Britain's leading designers of stained glass and chief artist for the internationally renowned Goddard & Gibbs Studios – at Holy Trinity Barkingside IG6 2BX (Contact: Parish Office Tel: 020 8551 9268 or Email htparish.mag@btinternet.com)
- Mural depicting scenes from the Old and New Testaments by Derek James at St John's North Woolwich with Silvertown, Albert Road/Manwood Street, North Woolwich.
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Restoration, a wood engraving by Peter S. Smith (a member of the Society of Wood Engravers) commissioned by St John the Baptist Leytonstone in 2011 to celebrate the completition of restoration work at the church (Church Lane/High Road, Leytonstone. Contact: Rev. Raymond Draper. Tel: 020 8257 2792). Limited edition prints of this engraving are available from the church at the price of £150 (20% of the price goes to the Church Restoration Fund) - email Rev. Kathryn Robinson on kthrynrbnsn@aol.com for more information;
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Graffiti Love, a mosaic by Viki Isherwood Metzler, and a Trinity sculpture incorporating a mosaic by Sergiy Shkanov can be seen in the community garden at St John's Seven Kings (St John's Road, ILford IG2 7BB. Contact Rev. Jonathan Evens. Tel: 020 8598 1536). Metzler and Shkanov are both commission4mission artists and their work now features in the local church art trail for the cluster of Anglican churches - see http://joninbetween.blogspot.com/2011/08/local-art-trail.html for more information.