Stations of the Cross 2009
Mark Cazalet is a noted artist in many different media and styles and has completed several very significant church and cathedral commissions including a stained glass window at Worcester Cathedral and a Tree of Life mural at Chelmsford Cathedral. Mark’s vision is to produce images for the Stations by involving members of the many different groups who come through the church: the congregations, those who attend the project for the homeless, the Mums and Toddlers Group, Coffee Morning people etc. The artistic vision will be very tightly directed by Mark but the aim is to explore the creative potential of the community as a whole. This is a very exciting project and the third year that we have held a Stations exhibition. Each year the project has taken a different form. The first year we commissioned a leading artist to produce the Stations and last year the students from The Slade School of Fine Art entered a competition to win a prize and the opportunity to create the exhibition. This year the focus will be on involving local people. Do visit Mark’s website www.markcazalet.co.uk
Fr Martin has commissioned me to continue your successful programme of new Stations of the Cross, this year they will be made by the various groups that worship and participate in activities at the church. The period of production would be an intense two-week bloc between Thursday 5th and Friday 20th of February. On Saturday 21st there will be a celebration of the Stations prior to their use throughout the season of Lent. The artist Kate Keara Pelen, has agreed to assist me as a volunteer throughout the project.
The aims of the project are:
That the community of St Andrews create fifteen absorbing visual Stations of the Cross, to be a unique focus for the church’s Lenten preparation for Easter.
To make a communal work, that fosters mutual identification between the groups who use the church, as a common reflection on Christ’s incarnation and Passion.
To provide a means for deeper personal reflection on the gospel narratives, where we imaginatively identify with the protagonists and spectators of the gospel story.
By using diverse materials, and working in groups, to open up each individual’s creativity, and explore the creative potential of the community as a whole.
In setting the Gospels in the context of our everyday lives to affirm the relevance of Christ’s suffering and resurrection, and particularly in St Andrews Parish.
In the making process each person can find a creative release for their the own imaginative vision through colour, shape, texture and combination of materials.
The preparation
The first stage is the precise planning of each session: the ability range of the participants, the selection of which stations suit the experience of the group, and matching materials to be used. I will meet each group before Christmas in order to familiarise myself with them and introduce the project. All materials have been bought in advance, but I will also (in the best Blue Peter tradition) be circulating a list of recycled materials that the parish could help me by gathering from the debris of the Christmas festivities!
The stations will be mounted around the ten nave pillars, on 12mm birch ply boards on a shaped cradle, which is strapped over foam to each column. The remaining five Stations will be sited at locations in the Chancel and Lady Chapel. This will provide flexible standardised surfaces that can adjust to the varied formats and individuality of each group’s creativity. The existing plaster stations would be veiled during Lent.
The execution
The south aisle will be the fabrication area, as the floor can be protected with thick plastic sheeting and it allows a clear run of work-tables to be set up and dismantled each session.
I cannot guarantee the exact nature of the outcome but the new St Andrews Stations will be unique and powerful both as artefacts and a communal process of reflection on the Easter message. It will certainly be one of the most exciting and rewarding projects I have done. Thank you for your faith and willingness to undertake this creative pilgrimage.
Yours in anticipation, Mark Cazalet
Latest photos below
All photos here are © Kate Keara Pelen
Please click on a photo to see a larger image (a new tab or window will open).
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