‘Whether it be music or painting or drama, sculpture or
architecture or any other form of art, there is an instinctive sympathy between
all of these and the worship of God. Nor should the church be afraid to thank
the artists for their help, or to offer its blessing to the works so pure and
lovely in which they seek to express the Eternal Spirit. Therefore I earnestly
hope that in this diocese (and in others) we may seek ways and means for a
reconciliation of the Artist and the Church—learning from him as well as giving
to him and considering with his help our conception alike of the character of
Christian worship and of the forms in which the Christian teaching may be
proclaimed.’
On 27th June 1929, the day he became Bishop of
Chichester, George Bell famously expressed, in his enthronement address, his
commitment to a much closer relationship between the Anglican Church and the
arts.
Bell had been intent on re-establishing the link between
the Church and the arts from his early days as Dean of Canterbury (1924-9)
where he had begun with religious drama, commissioning in 1928 a new play for
the cathedral from John Masefield; an event which in large part led to the
establishing of a series of Canterbury plays, including Murder in the Cathedral
by T.S. Eliot. He went on to commission drama, music and visual art, put
structures in place (e.g. the Sussex Churches Art Council and its ‘Pictures in
Churches Loan Scheme’) to support a wider commissioning of artists, placed his
trust in the vision of artists when they encountered opposition and he was
called on to adjudicate on commissions and strongly supported the appointment
of Walter Hussey as Dean of Chichester Cathedral to take forward the
commissioning programme he had initiated there.
Bell viewed his drive to re-associate the Church and the
Arts as being “an effective protection against barbarism, whether the barbarism
was Nazism, materialism or any other threat to civilization.” Murals
commissioned from Duncan Grant, Vanessa Bell and Quentin Bell in 1941 for the Sussex
Church of St Michael & All Angels Berwick represented a fulfilment of his
vision be a catalyst for promoting the relationship between the Arts and the
Church. As Sir Kenneth Clarke wrote in 1941: “...with a little judicious
publicity it might have the effect of encouraging other dioceses to do the
same. If once such a movement got under way, it would have incalculable influence
for the good on English Art.”
The commission for the murals came about in the following way:
‘Sir Kenneth Clark announced in a letter to the Times
(1939) the formation of the Central Institute of Art and Design (CIAD) whose
purpose was to respond to the plight of artists in wartime … It was a cause
that Bell passionately identified with and almost immediately he took up the
challenge of stimulating Church patronage of the Arts within his own diocese.
He received enthusiastic support from Sir Kenneth Clark at the CIAD and within
his diocese from Professor Charles Reilly who had a home near Brighton. The
CIAD introduced Bell to the Society of Mural Painters whose membership included
both Hans Feibusch, who offered to undertake commissions in the Diocese for no
fee, and Duncan Grant who was also a committee member of the CIAD …
Feibusch was the first to complete murals in the Diocese
and Prof. Reilly heralded his work at St Wilfrid's, Brighton in 1940 as the
first ‘modern’ murals in any English church. By ‘modern’ he meant: a painting
belonging to the present generation and based in its forms and colour on the
revolution in the graphic arts brought about by the researches and experiments
of Cezanne and Picasso.
Prof. Reilly was credited by Bishop Bell with the idea of
taking the project to a new level by proposing Duncan Grant undertake a scheme
at Berwick. For the first time a modern artist of national standing would
undertake a complete decorative scheme for an historic rural church. If the
project was successful, they believed it would stimulate demand for commissions
in churches all over the country to alleviate the plight of many artists.’
‘Duncan Grant (1885-1978) was the lead artist for the
murals and put forward the initial proposals. He moved with Vanessa Bell (1879
– 1961) and her husband, Clive, to Charleston Farmhouse at the foot of the
Downs, three miles to the west of Berwick Church, in 1916. Vanessa was sister
of Virginia Woolf.
Quentin Bell (1910-1996) was the son of Vanessa and Clive
Bell and undertook all the paintings within the Chancel as well as ‘The Supper
at Emmaus’ at the end of the north aisle.’
They ‘had in view a ‘decorative scheme’ which, rather
than simply being a series of individual paintings within frames, would create
an environment with its own particular feeling and aesthetic.’ ‘The six larger works are Christ in Glory and a crucifixion scene, The Victory
of Calvary, by Duncan Grant; The Supper at Emmaus and The Wise and Foolish
Virgins by Quentin Bell; and The Annunciation and The Nativity by Vanessa Bell.’
Grant’s work was ‘influenced by his travels in Italy
where, as an art student, he had seen the mosaics at Ravenna and copied the
frescoes of Piero della Francesca (1420-1492) at Arezzo. Then in Paris he had
copied works by Chardin (1699-1779) portraying scenes from everyday life,
ordinary people in work or recreation. At the same time he studied the work of
the Impressionists and was later greatly influenced by the Post-Impressionists
such as Cezanne, Seurat, and others …
The murals at Berwick exhibit influences from all these
traditions, but also something of the artists’ focus on the intimacy of the
home and personal relationships and their love of the beauty and simplicity of
the Downland landscape.’
Berwick Church was unusual in that ‘the plain leaded
lights in its nave did not have figures or colour to clash with the paintings
around them, and this was even more pronounced after bomb damage caused them to
be replaced with completely plain glass. This gives beautiful views of the surrounding
Sussex countryside, which seem to complement rather than compete with the paintings,
many of which have the same countryside as their background.’
‘The Berwick commission required the agreement of both
the local Parochial Church Council and also the Chancellor of the Diocese. He
was himself advised by the Diocesan Advisory Committee (DAC) …
However, just before the Chancellor could give his
authorisation, one member of the parish lodged a formal petition objecting to
the murals. This triggered a 'Consistory Court' hearing at which evidence was
heard from both those in favour and those opposed to the scheme. Bishop Bell
along with members of the CIAD felt that much of the future of Church Patronage
of the arts might rest upon this commission.
In the small flint schoolhouse, just down the lane from
the church on 1st October 1941, the court heard evidence from Sir Kenneth
Clark, Bertram Nicholls and Frederick Etchells in support of the scheme. The
sincerity of the artists was emphasised along with their generosity in asking
for only a fraction of what the work would normally cost. Despite the
objections, the Chancellor authorised the commission to go ahead.’
It is difficult to measure the impact that Bishop Bell,
and the Berwick murals in particular, have had on Church patronage of ‘modern
art’. Grant was only to receive one other church commission – frescoes painted
in 1959 for Lincoln Cathedral’s Russell Chantry - and the catalytic effect for
which Bell had hoped did not materialise in any dramatic way. However, much
commissioning did take place in the post-war years particularly where
reconstruction to damaged churches was needed.
The artists at Berwick were considered ‘avant garde’ in
their day but they actually produced a scheme for the church which drew heavily
on the ‘tradition of ecclesiastical art.’ They paid ‘homage to the high points
of the artistic heritage of a European Civilization’ which was, at that time,
in turmoil. Though they were modern artists they expressed ‘a respect for both
the history and tradition of art and the simplicity of the setting and
community for whom they were painting.’
The murals are, like those of Stanley Spencer in the
Sandham Memorial Chapel at Burghclere, ‘a unique example of war art:’
‘They record the landscape, the people, and the way of
life that was under threat. Christ in
Glory depicting, amongst the three servicemen shown, Douglas Hemming who
was killed at Caen, takes on a war memorial role. Their religious content
reflects the belief of their patron that Christianity was the central pillar of
a European civilization that was under threat from the despotic forces of evil.’
As with Spencer’s murals, the artist’s love for and use
of ‘local people and the local landscape showed how the divine was a part of
the everyday’ enabling them to ‘sense the closeness of God to their own lives.’
As Bell put it in his dedication sermon:
‘The pictures will bring home to you the real truth of the Bible story ... help
the pages of the New Testament to speak to you - not as sacred personages
living in a far-off land and time, but as human beings ... with the same kind
of human troubles, and faults, and goodness, and dangers, that we know in
Sussex today.’
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Extreme - Ghost.
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