Faith & Image meeting

The next meeting of the Faith & Image group will be held on Thursday 24th September at 8.00pm in the Gwinnell Rooms of St Marys Woodford (High Road, Woodford, London E18 2PA). The meeting will be on the theme of Buddhist art with input from Buddhist artist Padmayogini and will be followed on Friday 2nd October by a visit to the London Buddhist Centre at Bethnal Green.

Please could you let Jean Wyber (wyberfamily@aol.com) or Jane Cooper (jcant29@aol.com) know if you are intending to come on the visit. The vegetarian lunch on 2 October is available at the Buddhist restaurant next door. The group hope to let us have details of their Armenian talk and visit scheduled for November in the near future.

Stations on the E17 Art Trail

The guide to the E17 Art Trail has been published and includes the exhibition of Henry Shelton's Stations of the Cross at St Barnabas Walthamstow.

The E17 Art Trail is an artist run project which provides the framework for E17's and Waltham Forest's artists and makers to exhibit and promote their work and art practice. Organisers have chosen the theme of home this year to celebrate the places where those in E17 live and work and, as a result, many artists will be opening their homes to the public. A whole host of craft related events have surged onto this year's map as well as art exhibitions. This year's trail also offers a chance to reacquaint the general public with local history and to share the experience with a few participatory and family orientated events.

In keeping with the theme of 'home', Henry's exhibition is listed as A Spiritual Home and can be viewed on Saturday 5th & 12th September from 10.30am - 5.00pm and on Sunday 6th & 13th September from 1.00-4.00pm.

The Glory of the Sacred

All Saints Goodmayes (Goodmayes Lane, Ilford IG3 9SJ) celebrate 100 years of worship on their site over the weekend of 16th - 18th October 2009 with a Festival Weekend including a concert, flower festival, recitals, services and a Commission For Mission exhibition.

The full programme is as follows:

• Friday 16th October: Art Exhibition & Flower Festival, 10.00am - 4.00pm. Music recitals featuring Commission For Mission member Alexander Chaplin will also be given throughout the day. Youth Service, 8.00pm.
• Saturday 17th October: Art Exhibition & Flower Festival, 10.00am - 4.00pm. 'The Glory of Sacred Music' Concert featuring the All Saints Festival Choir and the East London Chorus, conducted by Alexander Chaplin, 7.30pm.
• Sunday 18th October: Praise Service, 10.30am. Art Exhibition & Flower Festival, 11.30am - 6.30pm. Choral Evensong, 6.30pm.

The programme for 'The Glory of Sacred Music' concert includes CHH Parry - I Was Glad When They Said To Me; Howard Goodall - The Lord Is My Shepherd, Love Divine; Hayden - excerpts from The Creation; Vaughan Williams - Five Mystical Songs, All People That On Earth Do Dwell; Faure - Cantique De Jean Racine; Cesar Franck - Panis Angelicus; Brahms - Geistilches Leid; and John Ireland - Greater Love. The East London Chorus will feature Max Kenworthy (Organ), Martin Muir (Baritone), and Alexander Chaplin (Conductor).

Concert tickets are £10 (£8, £5 concessions/child only available if booked in advance). Student Standby, £3 on the night with student ID. Available from the Ticket Secretary on 07958 066394 or online from www.WeGotTickets.com and at the door on the night.

Those attending any aspect of the Festival weekend will also be able to see the engraved windows on the Life of Christ by our Chairman, Henry Shelton, which gave him the initial idea for Commission For Mission.

Press coverage

Henry Shelton has been featured in this week's edition of his local newspaper, the Ilford Recorder. In the piece Henry tells how he came up with the idea for Commission For Mission and says:

"I enjoy the creative process. I sometimes ask myself why I'm doing it! But I've been blessed. I enjoy the profoundness and mystery of it. If you go to Italy, the churches are full of tourists looking at the art. But you don't really get that here. Often, wonderful art can be found in churches, but people would rather go to galleries. It is important that the link between the Church and art is recognised."

The latest issue of Art & Christianity has been published and includes an exhibition review written by Jonathan Evens plus information about our November Study Day. Jonathan's review is of an installation entitled The Manifestation - Falling Pheobe by Richard Layzell and Tania Koswycz at St Martin's Colchester. An online review by Jonathan of the same installation can be found by clicking here.

Developing commissions

Henry Shelton with 'Do this in remembrance of me'

Detail of Henry Shelton's 'Crucifixion'

Henry Shelton and Jonathan Evens spent the afternoon exploring a possible commission before returning to Henry's home to view his work on the initial part of the commission for the St Luke's Chapel at Queens Hospital Romford. The above works will be dedicated along with the Chapel itself by Bishop David on Tuesday 1st September at 4.00pm.