'Run with the Fire' interviews

Steve Scott has been interviewed about his wide ranging career in art, music and poetry, including his involvement with Run with the Fire, in the current edition of Down The Line magazine. Steve has some fascinating things to say and the interview can be downloaded by clicking here.

Transpositions has also published an interview with Steve specifically about Run with the Fire. Run With The Fire is an arts project for the London 2012 Olympics year organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse. Designed to exhibit in churches, Transpositions say that Run with the Fire is an interesting synergistic example of what happens when art, culture, and the church come together. Click here to read the interview.

Steve has also given an interview to Church and Art Network in which Run with the Fire is featured as a case study. 

Steve Scott is a British writer, poet, and musician whose songs have been recorded by artists including the 77s and Larry Norman. His musical and spoken word projects include Love in the Western World, Lost Horizon, Magnificent Obsession, More Than a Dream, The Butterfly Effect, Empty Orchestra, We Dreamed That We Were Strangers, and Crossing the Boundaries, in conjunction with painter Gaylen Stewart. In 2012, his songs became available on MP3 format, coincident with the release of a limited edition CD, Emotional Tourist: A Steve Scott Retrospective. He writes and speaks often on the arts in the UK and US, and is the author of Like a House on Fire: Renewal of the Arts in a Post-modern Culture, The Boundaries, and Crying for a Vision and Other Essays: The Collected Steve Scott Vol. One. He holds an MA in global leadership.

Pentecost Festival interview

Jonathan Evens was interviewed by the Pentecost Festival team prior to the Run with the Fire exhibition. This is what he said:

Can you tell us about yourself and a little bit about the work you do?  

I am a minister, writer and visual artist located in East London.  I’ve been writing poetry and short stories from a young age.  I was ordained in 2003 and from that point onwars have been blending ministry and art.  Before I was ordained, I was doing both separately. One of the great things about being ordained has been to explore art and ministry together.  In the two churches I’ve ministered in so far, there have been many opportunities to initiate arts-related ministry in a parish setting. 

What scriptures or what technique do you use to help people connect the dots with God & art? 

I think it’s helpful to think in terms of the different persons within the Trinity.  The Father (Creator) - we are all made in the image of God and this implies that we will all have creative abilities to express in some way.  The Son (Jesus) - the incarnation of God becoming a human being is important for the visual arts because, while in Judaism and Islam artists don’t depict God, within Christianity we can because God appeared as a human being as Jesus. On the basis of that, we can depict God.  Finally, the Holy Spirit comes on human beings in relation to our arts and crafts abilities.  A good example are the people who created the tabernacle by means of the Spirit’s inspiration.  It is, therefore, a gift of the Spirit to be an artist.

Who is your favourite visual artist and why? 

My favourite visual artist is Mark Chagall; a Russian Jew who lived in France for a large part of his life.  His paintings were based on his imaginative and emotional life.  Some images were taken from the bible and others from his personal experience and childhood.  There is a whole mix that goes on in his canvas that he brings together and reconciles in his paintings.

Tell us about a time that you’ve seen God’s working through your art? 

One particular way is through a serious of mediations that I’ve written on Christ’s passion.  These have been used in a number of arts projects during Holy Week.  People have taken the meditations with them as they have seen the artworks, so that people can stop and reflect on the meaning of the passion.  This helped people understand what Jesus went through during the Holy Week.  Through the combination of these meditations and artworks, each person had their own unique experience of the Passion.

You are connected with international artists.  How important is collaboration to you? 

Collaboration is very important, especially in visual arts.  It’s easy for artists to feel isolated.  There can often be misunderstandings within the Church of what they do and what they are about, leading artists to feel not valued.  I am part of an organization called commission4mission that exists to bring artist of Christian faith together, to promote their work to churches, and to encourage the commissioning new pieces of contemporary art for church buildings.  We also exist for networking and sharing thoughts and ideas.  Such groups are vital for the support and encouragement of artists in the Church. 

http://commissionformission.blogspot.com. 

What are you doing in the Pentecost Festival this year? 

I am organizing an exhibition with commission4mission at the Strand Gallery which has the theme of Run With the Fire.  It is a collaborative project with two other arts organizations (CANA and Veritasse) and is based on Pentecost and 2012 Games themes.  The central image of Run With the Fire comes from the Olympic torch and the exhibition as a whole explores running life’s race with passion and spirit.  The launch night is May 21^st at 6pm and the exhibition is May 22^nd – 27^th from 11am - 6pm.

Are you excited about the 2012 Games? 

Yes!

What impact do you think the 2012 Games will have on the City of London? 

I think it will have a big impact!  It will create a large level of interest and engagement for a lot of people visiting the City of London.  The churches will create outreach events around the Games and ultimately, there will be a tangible legacy in East London from having had the 2012 Games here.  Run with the Fire is a resource for the kind of community and outreach events that churches will organise.  It is a digital art exhibition on DVD including work from twenty five different international artists which can be projected or shown on monitors at Olympics-themed events.  The Run With the Fire DVD is on sale via Veritasse at http://www.veritasse.co.uk/.

'Run with the Fire' exhibition

 The Run with the Fire exhibition opened today at the Strand Gallery (32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) and can be seen from 22nd - 27th May (11.00am - 6.00pm, Sunday 11.00am - 2.00pm), as part of the Pentecost Festival.

Original work by commission4mission and invited artists complements the Run with the Fire digital exhibition (featuring the work of 25 international artists) to create a stimulating and exciting show with an eclectic mix of styles and media and exploring the broad theme of running life's race with passion and spirit.

Run with the Fire is an arts project for churches in the 2012 Olympics year organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner. Run with the Fire aims to celebrate creativity, cultural exchange and hope for the future by providing a virtual exhibition of international artwork for use in Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012.

Run with the Fire provides a virtual exhibition of international artwork available on DVD, for display on large scale HD TV or monitor, or for projection using a digital projector. This digital exhibition can be presented as part of Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012 plus arts events or exhibitions organized by local churches. Copies of the Run with the Fire DVD can be purchased via http://www.veritasse.co.uk/cards-prints/most-popular/run-with-the-fire-dvd-pack/ or at the exhibition. A preview of the Run with the Fire digital exhibition can be seen at http://youtu.be/nFBGZDgFaw4, while for up-to-date news of the project see http://runwiththefire.blogspot.com/.

On Saturday 26th May there will be an additional programme of art talks and painting demonstrations:

• Painting demonstration – Harvey Bradley, ongoing throughout the day. See Harvey work on a painting and discuss his approach with him.
• The Spiritual Image in Modern Art - Mark Lewis, 11.30am. A broad overview of the spiritual impulse in the art forms of the modern world and their potential to turn our minds to higher things.
• Run with the Fire – Steve Scott, 12.30pm. A talk about the ‘Run with the Fire’ project and DVD.
• Stanley Spencer – A Visionary of our Time – Mark Lewis, 2.00pm. A talk which examines the life and work of one of Britain’s most renowned and eccentric 20th Century painters. The main themes include Spencer’s time as a war artist, and his extraordinary paintings which envision the Christian Gospels played out by the people in his beloved home town of Cookham.

• Praying with our eyes open – Glenn Lowcock, 3.00pm. A talk on using images as an aid to prayer.
• Emotional Tourist – Steve Scott, 4.00pm. What I am learning about art, life, spirituality, Trinity, and relational aesthetics from my travels in Bali and elsewhere.
• Christian influences on modern & contemporary art – Jonathan Evens, 5.00pm. A broad overview of modern and contemporary art and artists which engage with Christianity.

The event listing for the exhibition and launch night can be found at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/ai1ec_event/run-with-the-fire-exhibition/?instance_id=873. Directions to the gallery are at: https://www.proudonline.co.uk/contact.aspx.

'Run with the Fire' exhibition - full details

Lilies by Miriam Kendrick

Refreshing by Rachel Watson

Christ over Creation by Ken James Ashby

Strange Flower by Christopher Clack





The final line-up of commission4mission and invited artists showing in the Run with the Fire exhibition at the Strand Gallery (32 John Adam Street, London WC2N 6BP) from 22nd - 27th May (11.00am - 6.00pm, Sunday 11.00am - 2.00pm), as part of the Pentecost Festival, includes Ken James Ashby, Harvey Bradley, Colin Burns, Christopher Clack, Jonathan Evens, Christine Garwood, Jim Insole, Miriam Kendrick, Glenn Lowcock, Bradley Lucas, Henry Shelton, Sergiy Shkanov, Joy Rousell Stone, Esther Tidy, Mike Thomas, Rachel Watson and Peter Webb.

Original work by the above artists will complement the Run with the Fire digital exhibition (featuring the work of 25 international artists) to create a stimulating and exciting show with an eclectic mix of styles and media and exploring the broad theme of running life's race with passion and spirit.

Run with the Fire is an arts project for churches in the 2012 Olympics year organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner. Run with the Fire aims to celebrate creativity, cultural exchange and hope for the future by providing a virtual exhibition of international artwork for use in Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012.

Run with the Fire provides a virtual exhibition of international artwork available on DVD, for display on large scale HD TV or monitor, or for projection using a digital projector. This digital exhibition can be presented as part of Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012 plus arts events or exhibitions organized by local churches. Copies of the Run with the Fire DVD can be purchased via http://www.veritasse.co.uk/cards-prints/most-popular/run-with-the-fire-dvd-pack/ or at the exhibition. A preview of the Run with the Fire digital exhibition can be seen at http://youtu.be/nFBGZDgFaw4, while for up-to-date news of the project see http://runwiththefire.blogspot.com/.

A Launch Night on Monday 21st May, 6.00 - 8.00pm, will provide the first opportunity to see the exhibition and will also include music and poetry exploring the exhibition theme. Those performing include singer-songwriter and poet Malcolm Guite, artist-musician Colin Burns, artist-poet Jonathan Evens, musician-poet Steve Scott and performance poet Tamsin Kendrick. Refreshments will be available. Cost - £2.00, pay on the door.

On Saturday 26th May there will be an additional programme of art talks and painting demonstrations:

• Painting demonstration – Harvey Bradley, ongoing throughout the day. See Harvey work on a painting and discuss his approach with him.
• The Spiritual Image in Modern Art - Mark Lewis, 11.30am. A broad overview of the spiritual impulse in the art forms of the modern world and their potential to turn our minds to higher things.
• Run with the Fire – Steve Scott, 12.30pm. A talk about the ‘Run with the Fire’ project and DVD.
• Stanley Spencer – A Visionary of our Time – Mark Lewis, 2.00pm. A talk which examines the life and work of one of Britain’s most renowned and eccentric 20th Century painters. The main themes include Spencer’s time as a war artist, and his extraordinary paintings which envision the Christian Gospels played out by the people in his beloved home town of Cookham.

• Praying with our eyes open – Glenn Lowcock, 3.00pm. A talk on using images as an aid to prayer.
• Emotional Tourist – Steve Scott, 4.00pm. What I am learning about art, life, spirituality, Trinity, and relational aesthetics from my travels in Bali and elsewhere.
• Christian influences on modern & contemporary art – Jonathan Evens, 5.00pm. A broad overview of modern and contemporary art and artists which engage with Christianity.

The event listing for the exhibition and launch night can be found at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/ai1ec_event/run-with-the-fire-exhibition/?instance_id=873. Directions to the gallery are at: https://www.proudonline.co.uk/contact.aspx. The programme for art talks and demonstrations on Saturday 26th May is at: http://commissionformission.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/pentecost-festival-exhibition-saturday.html.

Hard copies of programmes for the Pentecost Festival can be ordered from: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/contact/order-programmes/. The promo for the Festival can be viewed at: http://www.pentecostfestival.co.uk/promo/.

Newsletter No. 10 – January 2012

Peter Webb speaking at the Tokarska Gallery Private View

Christmas exhibition at the Tokarska Gallery

Our Christmas exhibition at the Tokarska Gallery featured a variety of c4m artists working in a variety of media (ceramics, concept drawings, fused glass, paintings, painted wooden reliefs), styles (abstract, conceptual, figurative, semi-abstract) and content (biblical scenes, landscapes, portraits, still life, symbolic scenes).

Contributing artists included Harvey Bradley, Colin Burns, Christopher Clack, Ally Clarke, Valerie Dean, Jonathan Evens, Mark Lewis, Nadiya Pavliv-Tokarska, Janet Roberts, Caroline Richardson, Henry Shelton, Joy Rousell Stone, Andrew Vessey and Peter Webb.

As part of the Private View Colin Burns performed guitar instrumentals from his forthcoming CD. Andrew Vessey read three poems that, like several of the paintings he exhibited, explore encounters and travels in well-known biblical stories but set into the context of contemporary landscapes of Suffolk and Gower. Peter Webb spoke about creativity as the essence of God in his introductory remarks and Jonathan Evens read his poem on the creative process entitled 'The Mark'.

Marisa Martin, writer of the 'True Colors' column on WorldNetDaily, featured c4m and the Tokarska exhibition in a piece entitled 'Anglicans invite artists back to church' (see http://www.wnd.com/2011/12/372561/). In her article, Martin noted that c4m works to keep alive the Anglican Church tradition of inspiring, commissioning and installing new art but "uses contemporary and decidedly non-traditional art" to do so. She highlighted particularly the work of Peter Webb and Christopher Clack, describing Webb's Supper at Emmaus as "something like a cross between Jack Levine's and Franz Hals' group scenes" and Clack's Descent II as "visually riveting, although spiritually neutral." The question that c4m poses, she suggested, is whether "new and contemporary symbols be found for the traditional images and doctrines of the Christian faith?"

Run With The Fire

A promotional presentation for 'Run with the Fire' is now available to be viewed on YouTube. The presentation outlines the project, shows examples of work included and gives information for ordering copies of the 'Run with the Fire' pack. Each pack includes: a digital exhibition on DVD with a 2 year licence for use in the purchasing church; an electronic book and planning aid produced by three experienced Christian event organisers, with samples and templates to save you time and effort; telephone, skype or e-mail support to help you use the pack effectively; access to a large pool of Christian artists who you may wish to involve in your project.

Each 'Run with the Fire' pack costs £50.00 (any profits, go to Oxfam) and can be bought from http://www.veritasse.co.uk/ or by contacting Sue Newham on 01686 626228.

Member profile: Robert Enoch

Robert Enoch's art is an exciting exploration of colour, form, movement and meaning. He makes artistic interpretations of the Bible in a visionary form and has made installations for the church that visually explore and interpret the Gospels. His films blend social documentary and corporate video. In his photographs he searches the environment for images of piercing meaning among the everyday.

Dedication of etched windows

The second set of etched windows, etched by Richard Paton to designs by Henry Shelton at All Saint's Hutton, were dedicated on Sunday 4th December 2011 by Revd. Bob Wallace, Rector of the parish. The windows feature symbols of the four Evangelists complementing the earlier set of windows in the opposite screen which features symbols of seven Saints.

2012 plans:

Our plans for 2012 include: work on three current commissions; a Central London exhibition as part of the Pentecost Festival; and our partnership project, 'Run with the Fire', with CANA and Veritasse for the Olympics.

'Run with the Fire' on YouTube

A promotional presentation for 'Run with the Fire' is now available to be viewed on YouTube. The presentation outlines the project, shows examples of work included and gives information for ordering copies of the 'Run with the Fire' pack.

  

Every 'Run with the Fire' pack includes:

·        a digital exhibition on DVD with a 2 year licence for use in the purchasing church

·        an electronic book and planning aid produced by three experienced Christian event organisers, with samples and templates to save you time and effort

·        telephone, skype or e-mail support to help you use the pack effectively

·        access to a large pool of Christian artists who you may wish to involve in your project   

Each 'Run with the Fire' pack costs £50.00 (any profits, go to Oxfam) and can be bought from http://www.veritasse.co.uk/ or by contacting Sue Newham on 01686 626228.

New blog - Run with the Fire

Run with the Fire is an arts project for the London 2012 Olympics organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner.

Run with the Fire aims to celebrate creativity, cultural exchange and hope for the future by providing a virtual exhibition of international artwork for use in Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012.

Run with the Fire will provide a virtual exhibition of international artwork available on DVD, for display on large scale HD TV or monitor, or for projection using a digital projector. This digital exhibition can be presented as part of Olympics-themed events organised by churches in 2012 plus arts events or exhibitions organized by local churches.

The Run with the Fire DVD will come with an electronic resource package, to accompany the virtual exhibition, which will give ideas for churches on how to organize and facilitate community/arts events.

The Run with the Fire resources (virtual exhibition DVD & electronic resources package) cost £50.00 and can be ordered by contacting Jonathan Evens on 020 8599 2170 or jonathan.evens@btinternet.com.

 

Latest news of Run with the Fire can be found on our blog at http://runwiththefire.blogspot.com/. Two recent articles about the project can be found at: http://www.artway.eu/content.asp?id=1043&lang=en&action=show and http://www.artway.eu/artway.asp?id=225&lang=en&action=show&type=current.

Run With The Fire

Run with the Fire  - a tremendous opportunity to reach out to your community by engaging with the 2012 Olympics.

Order your RWTF pack now!

• Includes a DVD of 25 new artworks from international Christian artists, with information about the works
• An event support pack, written by Christian artists and event organisers, covering over 20 different themes, to help you plan and run your community arts event
• Phone or e-mail advice and support

All the artwork is in from our 25 international artists, who have created a new piece of artwork specifically for the Run with the Fire project.

This project is unique in that every participant has started their artistic journey from an idea or vision statement provided by another artist. This has created a sense of community and energy which comes through clearly in the finished pieces. Different artists, different media, different nationalities but one common purpose– to glorify God through their work.

CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse are delighted to announce the names of participating artists:

Ally Clarke, England

Andrew Taylor, England

Michelle Mattingly, USA

Bobbette Rose, USA

Christine Garwood, Wales

Dietske van Winkelhoff, Netherlands

Erland Sibuea, Indonesia

Glenn Lowcock, England

Jen Smith, Wales

Hyun-Young Kim, South Korea

Jae Im Kim, South Korea

Kirsten Borror, USA

Jenny Hawke, England

Heather Distant Taiwo, USA

Karen Burnett, England

Nickolay Steffanov, Bulgaria

Kim Daus Edwards, USA

Diane Fairfield, USA

Michelle Arnold Paine, USA

Miriam Cabello, Australia

Rick Delanty, USA

Seong-Kyoo Jeon, South Korea

Titia Ballot, South Africa

Whojeong Lee, South Korea (Residing in USA)

Sue Newham (Wales)

To order a Run with the Fire pack, e-mail Jonathan Evens at jonathan.evens@btinternet.com or phone 020 8599 2170.

Any profit made after publicity and production costs have been met will be donated to Oxfam.

Run With The Fire

‘Run With The Fire’ is an arts project for the London 2012 Olympics, organised by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse, based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner. 24 international artists were selected by a jury which included Dianne B. Collard (Director of Ministries - Europe for Artists in Christian Testimony International), Martin Crampin (Artist, researcher and designer), and Marleen Hengelaar-Rookmaaker (Editor-in-Chief of ArtWay).

The project began with each artist writing a statement to describe their vision of ’Running With The Fire’ for the other artists involved. Each artist is creating an artwork, using the idea of another artist as a starting point. This aspect of the project simulates the idea of a relay, with ideas being passed from one artist to the next. The final product will be a virtual exhibition on DVD/CD-Rom for display on large scale HD TV or monitor, or for projection using a digital projector. This virtual exhibition of international artwork can then be presented alongside arts events, exhibitions or other Olympics-themed events organized by local churches during 2012.

Colours & Stations of the Cross (2)

Colours & Stations of the Cross is a commission4mission exhibition at All Saints Maldon: Saturday 16th – Friday 22nd April 2011, 10.00am – 4.00pm.

Colours & Stations of the Cross features Stations of the Cross by Rosalind Hore combined with pottery by Harvey Bradley. Harvey's pottery has been designed to complement Rosalind's Stations through its use of colour.

Rosalind Hore

Rosalind Hore is a sculptor and painter of Christian subjects – Christ figures, nativity sets, Ecce Homo, Stations of the Cross etc. She works in clay, plaster, concrete (figures can also be bronze cast at the foundry). Her paintings are mostly in acrylic of the events in the life of Christ. Her work can currently be seen St Edmund Tyseley, St Laurence Upminster, and St Mary Goring-by-Sea. Rosalind seeks to express exaggerated emotion in her work through the use of elongated stylized figures, strong colour and sweeping folds, which exaggerate both movement and emotion.

All these characteristics of her work are apparent in these Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross have been a big influence on her and her work. For this series she has used the traditional sequence of 14 pictures or sculptures depicting the following scenes:

1. Jesus is condemned to death
2. Jesus is given his cross
3. Jesus falls the first time
4. Jesus meets His Mother
5. Simon of Cyrene carries the cross
6. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
7. Jesus falls the second time
8. Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem
9. Jesus falls the third time
10. Jesus is stripped of His garments
11. Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross
12. Jesus dies on the cross
13. Jesus' body is removed from the cross (Deposition or Lamentation)
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb and covered in incense.

Although not traditionally part of the Stations, the Resurrection of Jesus, as is common nowadays, has been included as a fifteenth station. Each of the Stations in this series are 34 x 42 inches, painted in acrylics, and feature three rose buds as a sign of the Trinity.
Harvey Bradley

Trained as a designer, Harvey Bradley is a long standing and selected member of Anglian Potters – a prestigious association that exhibits members work in such venues as Ely Cathedral, All Saints (Jesus Lane) and Emmanuel College in Cambridge. As well as contributing to these, Harvey has shown work at Chichester Cathedral, Spring Harvest, New Wine and Greenbelt with the Christian arts group Veritasse.

Harvey’s pottery series uses a new sequence for the Stations of the Cross, as follows:

1 Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane – yellow, blue and green
colours of a hopeful garden overshadowed by a hopeless plan

2 Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested – brown, ochre and black
an earthly radical sets in motion loves trusting betrayal

3 Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin – stripes of blue, black and orange
religious order and logic threatened by revolutionary notions of Love

4 Jesus is denied by Peter – gold and grey
the loving wealth of a new way stumbles to emerge

5 Jesus is judged by Pilate – stripes of blue and black
Pilate’s clean-cut authority warped by political compromise

6 Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns – ochre, red and black
earthly vengeance on a passive form

7 Jesus takes up His cross – red, yellow and black
the carpenter lifts His earthly gift and transforms a crooked symbol

8 Jesus is helped by Simon to carry His cross – cream, brown and green
practical love breaks through a tyranny of hopelessness and hate

9 Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem – blue, orange and yellow
even a powerless Creator witnesses to the future promise

10 Jesus is crucified – black and red
stark clashes of light and dark – a ring of blood encircles a world of disbelief

11 Jesus promises His kingdom to the repentant thief – yellow, orange and blue
a cosmic reality breaks through the darkest experience of man

12 Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other – blue, red and yellow
from the dark, gentle caring begins a new weave of sharing

13 Jesus dies on the cross – brown and black
the earth collapses – a cosmic utterance of silence lies on a lonely cross

14 Jesus is laid in the tomb – orange, black and yellow
earth’s static time sinks in the spirit of man to prepare for a creative song

15 The resurrection of Jesus – yellow and blue
nature’s spirit re-awakens, bounding to the joy of our Creators call

Run with the Fire (3)

45 artists have asked to be considered to take part in the Run With The Fire project, which is a collaboration between CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse. Their submissions are now with the jury members who are finalising the list of artists they wish to see included. We are very privileged to have Martin Crampin, Marleen Henglaar– Rookmaaker and Dr Dianne Collard as our jurors.


We hope to be notifying artists of the jury’s decision by mid– February.

Run with the Fire will run alongside the London Olympics in 2012. This summer, we will be publicising the project to churches and encouraging them to sign up for a Run with the Fire arts event in their area, with the digital art exhibition acting as a catalyst for art workshops, exhibitions and community events.

If your church would like to receive more information about this, please e-mail Sue Newham on membership@veritasse.co.uk and express an interest.

commission4mission Newsletter No. 6

Pottery and paintings in our ‘Peacing Together One World’ exhibition at St Mary Magdalen, Billericay

Newsletter No. 6 – December 2010

Peacing Together One World

Peacing Together One World, our most recent exhibition, was held at St Mary Magdalen Billericay during One World Week. The exhibition was curated for us by Harvey Bradley who also acted as artist-in-residence throughout the exhibition. The exhibition featured a varied range of work by 14 commission4mission artists including our newest members at that point, Richard Baxter and Alan Hitching, both potters. As a result, a significant selection of pottery was shown alongside paintings and sculptures.

Harvey, and his wife Barbara, organised a range of supplementary events during the week which helped to swell the numbers attending the exhibition as a whole. These included a successful performance evening featuring images, meditations, music and poetry readings. Among those taking part in this evening were Colin Burns, Anne Creasey, Michael Creasey, Jonathan Evens and Helen Gheorgiou Gould.

Joy Rousell Stone @ St Nicholas Rawreth

Following from our ongoing exhibition space at All Saints West Ham, a second church has offered space to commission4mission members and Joy Rousell Stone was the first member to take up their offer with an exhibition of landscapes and animal paintings held at St Nicholas Rawreth in October. Joy’s skilful technique and insightful eye were greatly appreciated by those viewing the exhibition.

Run With The Fire

Run With The Fire is an arts project for the London 2012 Olympics organized by CANA, commission4mission and Veritasse based on the image of fire which links the Church’s Pentecost celebration with that of the Olympic runner.

Over 40 artists have applied to be part of Run With The Fire. Artists from South Korea, China, South Africa, USA, Netherlands, UK and the Philippines are all keen to supply artwork for the project. The deadline for entries has now passed. The next stage is the selection of artists by the jury members, all respected Christians with a background in the arts. All artists will be informed of the jury’s decision during January 2011.

Run With The Fire will create an original, international collection of artwork, for churches running community arts outreach projects, linked with the 2012 Olympics in London. Information for churches wishing to use the digital exhibition and put on community events will be produced by Easter 2011. If you wish to put your church on the Run With The Fire information mailing list, please contact Sue Newham, membership@veritasse.co.uk.

Run With The Fire is our first collaborative project but we hope it will not be the last as our Patron, the Bishop of Barking, is writing to a range of other arts and faith organizations to sound them out about the possibility of working in partnership in future.

Member profile: Ally Clarke

Ally Clarke studied Sculpture at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee and is inclined to create installation works complimented by photography, drawing, collage and print. Enjoying creative collaborations, she has worked with other artists to produce film and performance works. Ally views her creative work as a means of investigating the world and presents evocative, personal creations that produce opportunities for reflection and refreshment.

2011 plans

In 2011 expect to see among other initiatives:

• the launch of the Barking Art Trail;
• dedications of commissions at All Saints Hutton, St Edmunds Tyseley; St Peters Harold Wood;
• a group exhibition at the Crypt Gallery in St Martin-in-the-Fields;
• a new charitable constitution presented at our AGM;
• a new publicity leaflet; and
• involvement in the Barking Episcopal Area Art Festival and the Bishop of Barking’s resourcing mission week in Harlow.

Keeping Art and Soul Together

c4m featured in a recent Church Times article entitled ‘Keeping Art and Soul Together’ which can be read at http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=103880.