THE large Parish Church of St Michael and All Angels, Kingsland,
in Herefordshire, near the site of the Battle of Mortimer's Cross
(1461) during the Wars of the Roses, was built by the powerful
Mortimer family in the late 13th century. It is famous for its
beautiful medieval chantry, the Volka chapel, a Victorian painted
ceiling, and a medieval stained-glass window in the chancel
depicting Jesus, Mary, and four archangels.
Suddenly, this has been joined by a great company of angels
painted in oils and watercolours, sculpted in wood, bronze, and
stone, made into ceramic decorations, tapestry, and stained glass,
covering the stone walls, and hanging from pillars and the
protective scaffolding round the chancel. It brings together the
work of 58 artists from Paris, Dublin, London, Bath, and
Herefordshire itself to fund-raise for the restoration of the
church.
One of the few depictions of St Michael is by David England,
carved into stone. It shows the archangel, sword in hand, about to
swoop down mercilessly on the dragon. Another is Susie Cawley's
painting St Michael Saving Kingsland Church, a romantic
view of the old church nestling in the green countryside, and a
young, glamorous St Michael aiming his spear.
Many of the angels have been inspired by the conventional
medieval formula. Andy Pearson, a follower of Tilman
Riemenschneider, the great medieval German sculptor, believes that
contemporary sculptors don't need to show that they are better by
being different. He has carved his angel from limewood, and gilded
and polychromed it, giving it an uncanny resemblance to genuine
medieval carvings.
Véronique Avon takes her inspiration from various medieval
sources, including the Book of Kells, and, in this case, the angel
bosses of Tewkesbury Cathedral. Her graceful angels, presented in
black ink and coloured pencil on watercolour paper, are dressed
modestly in long, flowing pastel-coloured robes, and play medieval
instruments.
The smiling angel of Charles MacCarthy has an interesting
history, inasmuch as his painting is both of his mother and an
adaptation of the famous sculpture The Smiling Angel, of
Reims Cathedral, which was badly damaged in the First World War.
With the help of a previously made plaster replica, the statue was
restored, reinstalled on the west front of the cathedral, and
became a symbol of France's rebirth and recovery. MacCarthy's
mother, who was French, was said to have an amazing resemblance to
the Angel, and so this painting has particular meaning for him.
It is sometimes thought that angels visit as gentle birds or
harmless friendly insects. Julienne Braham's painting is filled
with white and golden doves flying together, and Lois Hopwood's
angel is a suggestion of a half-man, half-bird shape, flying in the
mist. Bright-coloured feathered wings in a plume are
Seraphim, the tapestry of Peter Privett. Winged
Saviours, Jane Tudge's diptych, is made of beeswax and
graphite, and the huge translucent wings attached to two tiny
beings are the magnification of actual bees' wings. She feels that
working in beeswax, which could melt in severe heat, is symbolic of
the vulnerability of bees and other wildlife.
Caroline Hands has updated "heavenly travel technology" and
dispensed with wings, and her angel is a subtle presence to be
perceived in the beauty and fragrance of colourful flowers and
trees.
In contrast, the angels of Ruth Cameron-Swan are naked,
hairless, macho figures, one with a smooth elegant shape crouching
to administer healing, and emanating a fiery peacock tail of
brilliant blue turquoise and brown, and another (not unlike King
Kong) apparently drawing energy out of himself. David Howorth's
full-size standing angel sculpture is also naked, but angular,
white, and calm.
Mary Ann Gelly, an American artist living in Ireland, has taken
the theme of Lucifer and Icarus, and has brought over a group of
table-top bronze fallen and falling angels, some landing on their
heads with crushed wings, and some still falling. "Sometimes," she
said, "the falling angels also seem to be flying because people
with great gifts of leadership, beauty, and creativity seem to fly,
but when too often they forget and think they are the source of it
all, they fall with a bang."
"The Company of Heaven" runs until 18 December. A percentage
of each sale will go towards the church's restoration. Prices range
from £95 to more than £12,000. Phone 07585 943290; or
emailinfo@SMAAAK.co.uk.
www.smaaak.co.uk