c4m art talks and AGM

c4m held its AGM tonight at St Paul's Goodmayes, where our current exhibition is taking place. Peter Webb spoke about his wood reliefs and Harvey Bradley about his latest work in ceramics with celadon, tenmoku and crackle glazes. Mark Lewis then reprised the talk he originally gave at St Paul's Harlow reviewing the career of John Piper before we completed the evening with our AGM.

commission4mission AGM and exhibition

St Paul's Church Goodmayes is hosting an Art Exhibition for commission4mission
Monday to Sunday ~ 1st to 7th July 2013. Open 10:00am to 4:00pm daily. Admission is free and Light Refreshments will be available.

The Art Exhibition will begin with a formal opening night including artist presentations, a talk on the work of John Piper by Mark Lewis and the Annual General Meeting for commission4mission on the evening of Monday 1st July 2013. Drinks and nibbles will be served from 6.30pm giving the opportunity ...to also view commission4mission's exhibition. From 7.30pm there will be several art talks - Harvey Bradley and Peter Webb speaking about aspects of their work and Mark Lewis on the work of John Piper - followed by commission4mission's AGM. All are welcome.

Artists exhibiting include: Ross Ashmore, Harvey Bradley, Anne Creasey, Michael Creasey, Valerie Dean, Elizabeth Duncan Meyer, Jonathan Evens, Mark Lewis, Danielle Lovesey, Caroline Richardson, Joy Rousell Stone, Henry Shelton and Peter Webb. Some of the exhibits will be for sale.
The last day of the exhibition will coincide with the 'Our Community Festival', an annual event co-ordinated by the London Borough of Redbridge. This will take place in Barley Lane Recreation Ground directly opposite the church and will run from 12 noon to 4:00pm on Sunday 7th July 2013.

St Paul's has been a generous patron of the arts through the generosity of the Parochial Church Council and many ad memoria by it's loyal and faithful membership throughout its history. The church is home for a large selection of stained glass, many from the original William Morris workshops at Walthamstow, now a museum.

 The Church is proud to own a set of contemporary 'Stations of the Crown of Thorns' a series of 14 individual pieces featuring a large Triptych. These were created by the local Goodmayes artist Henry Shelton the founding member of commission4mission. You can explore St Paul's permanent artworks by going to http://www.stpaulsgoodmayes.org.uk/the-artworks-of-st-pauls/.

For details on how to find the Church, please see http://www.stpaulsgoodmayes.org.uk/how-to-contact-us/location/.

c4m exhibition: St Paul's Goodmayes

St Paul's Church Goodmayes is hosting an Art Exhibition for commission4mission
Monday to Sunday ~ 1st to 7th July 2013. Open 10:00am to 4:00pm daily. Admission is free and Light Refreshments will be available. 

The Art Exhibition will begin with a formal opening night including artist presentations, a talk on the work of John Piper by Mark Lewis and the Annual General Meeting for commission4mission on the evening of Monday 1st July 2013. All are welcome.

Artists exhibiting include: Ross Ashmore, Harvey Bradley, Anne Creasey, Michael Creasey, Valerie Dean, Elizabeth Duncan Meyer, Jonathan Evens, Mark Lewis, Caroline Richardson, Joy Rousell Stone, Henry Shelton and Peter Webb. Some of the exhibits will be for sale.

The last day of the exhibition will coincide with the 'Our Community Festival', an annual event co-ordinated by the London Borough of Redbridge. This will take place in Barley Lane Recreation Ground directly opposite the church and will run from 12 noon to 4:00pm on Sunday 7th July 2013.

St Paul's has been a generous patron of the arts through the generosity of the Parochial Church Council and many ad memoria by it's loyal and faithful membership throughout its history. The church is home for a large selection of stained glass, many from the original William Morris workshops at Walthamstow, now a museum.

The Church is proud to own a set of contemporary 'Stations of the Crown of Thorns' a series of 14 individual pieces featuring a large Triptych. These were created by the local Seven Kings artist Henry Shelton the founding member of commission4mission.

You can explore St Paul's permanent artworks by clicking HERE.

For details on how to find us, please click HERE.

Art talks and exhibition reception

The Barking Episcopal Area Arts Festival has featured a full day on the visual arts today with art talks, the Run with the Fire digital art exhibition and Harlow Seniors Photographic Society Exhibition at St Paul's Harlow plus a lunchtime reception at the commission4mission exhibition in 20 Broad Walk, Harlow Town Centre CM20 1HT.

Bishop Stephen Cottrell outlined the background to Stanley Spencer's Christ in the Wilderness paintings before sharing meditations based on particular paintings in the series. Mark Lewis summarised the career of John Piper, highlighting his interest in abstraction, typographical content, war commissions, colour and contrast, stained glass commissions before ending with his murals including the Emmaus mosaic at St Paul's Harlow.

Many of those at the art talks then came across to view commission4mission's current exhibition as part of our lunchtime reception. The exhibition continues until 4.00pm on Monday 27th May.   

c4m at the Arts Festival for the Barking Episcopal Area

commission4mission will be mounting an exhibition using a shop unit in the Harvey Shopping Centre Harlow from Thursday 23rd to Monday 27th May as part of the Barking Episcopal Area Arts Festival and Heart 4 Harlow Festival. Also in the Festivals will be art talks by Bishop Stephen Cottrell (Stanley Spencer) and Mark Lewis (John Piper) plus a performance evening at Holy Trinity Hatfield Heath which will include a range of local musical contributions plus music from Colin Burns and poetry from Jonathan Evens, Mal Grosch and Jane Grell.

The exciting programme for the Barking Episcopal Area Arts Festival also includes the premiere of Korban – a new play on the life of Christ; Art talks; Art and photographic exhibitions; Flower Festival (Hatfield Broad Oak); Music and poetry evening (Holy Trinity Hatfield Heath); and Big Lunch and Community Praise, among other events.

The value of public art

The value of public art was under discussion yesterday at St Paul's Harlow with delegates to a commission4mission study day touring the Gibberd Gallery and Harlow Town Centre sculptures as examples of good practice in public planning.

Those attending the study day, organised by commission4mission and supported by both Art and Christianity Enquiry and the Harlow Art Trust, heard from the Rt Revd David Hawkins, Bishop of Barking, and Benedict Read, Trustee of the Harlow Art Trust and Deputy Chairman of the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association.

Bishop David argued that our towns and cities are increasingly dominated by multi-national brands and images that overtake communities visually and commercially. Within this context, "Public art helps to create the identity of a place by providing a rallying point around which people can be formed, as well as providing an opportunity to look beyond the humdrum in order to live better lives with more inspiration."

In his presentation, Benedict Read summarised the history of public art in the West in order to set in context the outstanding collection of public art in Harlow: "In their context, Harlow's commissions placed an emphasis on restoring the social fabric. Sir Frederick Gibberd saw public sculpture as a sign of civilisation and much public art is about exploring what should be valued in society."

Delegates visited the Gibberd Gallery to see the current John Mills retrospective and the Frederick Gibberd Collection of British watercolours and drawings before taking a tour of the Town Centre sculptures. An art workshop for members of St Paul's Harlow was led by Dr Philip Jenson of Ridley Hall and commission4mission artist, Robert Enoch. The workshop was used to plan a freize for St Paul's Harlow telling the big story of the Bible to which the congregation and the wider community will be able to contribute in future. The day ended with a cream tea at St Mary's Little Parndon.

St Paul's Harlow is a key part of the artistic heritage of Harlow being a modernist church designed by Humphrys and Hurst which includes an impressive mosaic by John Piper, on the theme of the Emmaus Road. St Paul's is also, as a result, one of the churches which features in the Art Trail for the Barking Episcopal Area. Recognising the significance of the Arts to Harlow and wanting to contribute to the understanding and development of public art in the Town Centre were two of the reasons why St Paul's Harlow chose to host this study day and involve commission4mission in exploring new possibilities for artwork in the church building. A photographic display, which can still be seen at the church, had also been commissioned to show hidden aspects and unusual perspectives of the church building as part of stimulating thought and encouraging fresh thinking. 

For more on the presentations at this study day click here and here.