This is the future of Catholic art! Margarita and I at the Scala Foundation have been energetically promoting the work of Martin Earle and Jim Blackstone at the Chichester Workshop.
A Marian Pilgrimage in Oxford
The wonderful thing about pilgrimage is that it requires all those present to make a sacrifice of time and give something of themselves. This inevitably opens the hearts of those present to the mysteries being contemplated in a way that attending a lecture could never do. The shared experience brought us together and established, one personal interraction at a time an authentic culture of faith that has the power to draw others in, because all are so obviously invited. It is easy to organise something like this and doesn't require a lot of effort, but it does require commitment a little bit of sacrifice.
St Birinus Church, Dorchester-on-Thames, Oxfordshire
The Chichester Workshop for Liturgical Art - Call for Apprentices
Online Classes in Medieval Pictorial Embroidery Styles, Including the Embroidery of Sacred Art Images
A Contemporary Mosaic of St Dominic in Chichester Cathedral
Here are some photos of recently mosaic of St Dominic, completed just a year ago. It was commissioned by the Anglican Bishop of Chichester, Right Reverend Dr Martin Warner. It was done by artist Jim Blackstone in a three month residency at the cathedral. During the residency, James worked alongside fellow liturgical artist Martin Earle within a custom-built studio. The project was developed with celebrated liturgical artist Aidan Hart.
Aidan, Martin and Jim who are Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Anglican respectively have recently established a new studio and liturgical art school -The Chichester Workshop for Liturgical Arts- under the patronage of Bishop Warner.
Saint Richard (Bishop of Chichester, 1244–1253) was prepared for the priesthood by the Dominican Order in Orléans and St Dominic’s apostolic spirituality informed his ministry across the Diocese of Chichester.Read more about the commission on the Cathedral website here.
