The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) exhibition

 

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) art exhibition which has been at St Andrew's Wickford will next be shown at St Paul's Church, New Southgate, from Friday 28 April to Thursday 4 May.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) is an image in charcoal of the Last Supper by Revd Alan Stewart, which includes the central character of a visually impaired Jesus, surrounded by twelve people of differing ages, backgrounds and abilities. At the table, an empty chair invites the viewer to find themselves at the table.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) has been commissioned by Celia Webster, Co-Founder of Wave (We’re All Valued Equally), as part of a project in which it seeds other images of the Last Supper that are truly for everyone. Schools, churches and community groups are being invited as part of this project to create their own images of welcome and belonging.

The exhibition includes additional images of welcome and belonging created by: WAVE (We are All Valued Equally); St Mary's Catholic Primary School in Muswell Hill; St Paul's CE Primary School in Barnet and Wickford Church of England School. The exhibition at St Paul's sees an additional piece - 'Me, Myself and I - God's Children' - by St Paul's Primary School N11 join the exhibition.

Photographs of the WAVE Church Last Supper were taken by Maria de Fatima Campos.

Pupils in year 1 and 2 at St Paul’s CofE School in Friern Barnet created their work with their amazing art teacher, Dimple Sthalekar. The work shows how we begin as roots and then grow. The leaves of the tree are multi-coloured and moveable to show how we can move into different spaces and communities. St Paul's is a hugely welcoming and inclusive school that welcomes children from all backgrounds and faiths and uses the medium of art to convey this.

St Mary's Catholic Primary School focused their piece on the empty chair included in Alan Stewart’s drawing. Pupils in Years 4 and 5 created ‘Take a Seat,’ a piece which uses the technique of mono-printing to create lots of empty chairs as an invitation for everyone to sit down and join the table. They began the project by talking about the empty chair and what it could mean. They also compared and contrasted it with the commissioned drawing to talk about difference and what forms that can take. Through the process, the children decided that the peace dove would make a good representation of god. The words around the dove invite us to take a seat, to unite us in love and community.

Alice Lucas, art teacher at Wickford Church of England School, helped everyone there make a special picture based on a rainbow and including images of pupils and staff to show that they all belong at the school.

The exhibition can be seen at St Paul's on Friday 28th, Saturday 29th, Sunday 30th April, and Thursday 4th May (see flyer above for times).

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Glen Hansard - Grace Beneath The Pines.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) exhibition

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) is an image in charcoal of the Last Supper which includes the central character of a visually impaired Jesus, surrounded by twelve people of differing ages, backgrounds and abilities. At the table, an empty chair invites the viewer to find themselves at the table.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) exhibition will be in St Andrew's Church (11 London Road, Wickford SS12 0AN) from 9 January until Easter. The exhibition includes additional Last Supper images created by: (Still) Calling from the Edge conference (including audio description); WAVE (We are All Valued Equally); St Mary's Catholic Primary School in Muswell Hill; and St Paul's CE Primary School in Barnet.

St Andrew’s Church is usually open: Saturdays from 8.30 am to 12.30 pm; Sundays from 9.30 am to 12.00 noon; Mondays from 1.30 to 3.45 pm; Tuesdays from 1.00 to 4.30 pm; and Wednesdays from 10.00 am to 12.00 noon. To arrange a visit with in-person audio description please contact Revd Jonathan Evens on tel: 07803 562329 or email: jonathan.evens@btinternet.com. See http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html for fuller information.

On Friday 27 January we will be holding an exhibition viewing evening from 7.00 pm. See this exhibition of Last Supper images and works about belonging or feeling welcomed. Hear from artist Alan Stewart, project lead Celia Webster (co-founder of WAVE), and Revd John Beauchamp, Disability Ministry Enabler for the Diocese of London. In-person audio description will be available during this event.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) has been commissioned by Celia Webster, Co-Founder of Wave (We’re All Valued Equally), as part of a project in which it seeds other images of the Last Supper that are truly for everyone. Schools, churches and community groups are being invited as part of this project to create their own Last Supper images (such as ‘Called to the Feast’ a video exhibition with audio description at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI_kHhSsVxg).

Pupils in year 1 and 2 at St Paul’s CofE School in Friern Barnet created their work with their amazing art teacher, Dimple Sthalekar. The work shows how we begin as roots and then grow. The leaves of the tree are multi-coloured and moveable to show how we can move into different spaces and communities. St Paul's is a hugely welcoming and inclusive school that welcomes children from all backgrounds and faiths and uses the medium of art to convey this.

The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) has been shown previously at St Martin-in-the-Fields, St Andrew's Hertford and Muswell Hill Methodist Church - see https://joninbetween.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-meaning-in-miracles-seeing-and.html and https://www.hertfordstandrews.co.uk/Groups/379600/Hertford_St_Andrews/Faith/Blind_Jesus/Bli nd_Jesus.aspx. 

Celia writes: “When our third little girl was born with learning disabilities my experience was of no longer fitting in, and of feeling that we didn’t belong anywhere. For me the piece is very moving. The young man leaning on Jesus’ shoulder reminds me of the trust my daughter seems to have in God (well, most of the time!) which often teaches and challenges me. The wounded Jesus reassures me that He is never a distant God and like any loving parent experiences his children’s hurt and suffering as his own. His vulnerability reflects the God that came as a vulnerable baby and then refugee and then victim of torture. It reminds me that, whilst sadly we Christians are a very poor advert for Christianity and can appear bigoted, racist, exclusive, homophobic and judgemental, Jesus is not like this. Jesus is the friend of the overlooked and those on the edge. He is the God of an upside-down Kingdom. However worthless, not good enough, whatever sense of failure we might feel, we are shown in this picture that our true identity is found in Jesus who just wants us to be close to him and love him and allow him to love and transform us!” 

The artist, Revd Alan Stewart, intends that this Jesus challenges theological and Biblical imagery of blindness as sin or something to be cured. This is a Jesus who comes from a place of vulnerability, unaffected by the visual appearance of others. Responding to the image, a visually impaired friend of Alan’s has written “as a visually impaired person an image of Jesus who is like me makes me feel accepted … I wish my visual impairment would be cured. But I am glad that Jesus embraces it.” 

Revd John Beauchamp, Diocesan Disability Ministry Enabler for the Diocese of London, writes that: “In this Last Supper the marginalised and excluded and devalued are invited to the table. Invited to be with Jesus. To sit and eat with Him. To find themselves with Him and recognise themselves in Him. To find that their embodiment is not a barrier but in fact their passport into the kingdom where all of our human diversity is redeemed and celebrated in a riot of joy and celebration.” 

The image is offered as the beginning of a conversation. The questions it asks include: 

• What associations do we have with blindness?
• How does this Jesus ‘see’ me?
• Is his outstretched hand a welcome or an asking for help?
• Why has each figure been chosen?
• What are their stories?
• Who else should be at this meal?
• Is the empty chair for you?

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Merry Clayton - Beautiful Scars.

One Tree Per Child

‘One Tree Per Child,’ which held a promotional reception at St Stephen Walbrook tonight, wants to have every child planting one tree as part of a primary school activity. If your school or council wants to get involved, this site will show you how.

‘One Tree Per Child’ is being rolled out in two ways:

• in the first instance they are rolling out the project in partnership with local councils. Councils who sign up agree to approach the primary schools in their local area. They then assist the primary schools to organise tree planting sites where their children can get to plant one tree each. The date of the planting is whatever day best suits the council and the school. This makes it easier for everyone to get involved.
• where a school approaches them, they work with them to get their local council involved. This is because the council often has easier access to trees, shrubs, land, tools and people who can help to prepare the tree planting site. This makes tree planting a lot easier for the schools.

In addition to working with councils, they also work with local tree planting groups and community organisations. These organisations can provide invaluable help to schools.

The project has been started by Olivia Newton-John and Jon Dee, the original founders of National Tree Day. Their aim is to get millions of children planting millions of trees.

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Donna Summer - MacArthur Park.

London Ablaze: Reception & prizegiving

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Blondie - Heart Of Glass.

Exhibition: London Ablaze

Major celebrations are taking place in The City of London to mark the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire, which occurred between 2nd and 5th September 1666. 

As part of these celebrations, the Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers of London, a City Livery Company, has chosen 10 London secondary schools each to design a piece of glass artwork on the theme of the Great Fire, in collaboration with a leading contemporary glass artist. The resulting works from these collaborations will be on display at an exhibition, London Ablaze, at the church of St Stephen Walbrook, next to the Mansion House, at the heart of the City on Thursday 1 st and Friday 2nd September (10am - 4pm). The Friday is the 350th anniversary of the day the Great Fire started. 

Early in 2016 the Glass Sellers’ Company selected ten artists and ten schools, allocating an artist to each school. Up to 15 students in Year 8 or 9 (age range 13-15) were chosen by each school to work with the artist. The process started by pupils learning about what happened during the Great Fire. They then worked with the artist for at least a day to design a work that interpreted the pupils’ vision of the Great Fire. The artists have then produced the works in their studios. 

The ten works are also being judged, with the winning school, teacher, pupils and artist receiving a glass work made especially by Andreya Bennett. The winner will be announced at a reception in the Church this evening (Thursday 1st September) at 5.00pm. The judges are Katharine Coleman MBE (glass engraver), Neil Hughes (Managing Director of Dartington Crystal) and Maria Chanmugam (a Trustee of the Glass Sellers’ charity). Eight of the 10 schools have associations with City Livery Companies. 

After being exhibited in the City, London Ablaze will move to Hatfield House in Hertfordshire where it will be exhibited for the month of September. On 29th September many of the pupils who have taken part in the Project will participate in a special day held by Hatfield House about Tudor and Stuart history including the Great Fire. 

The Master of the Glass Sellers’ Company, William Knocker, says “We looked for an original way for glass to celebrate this great historical event. As our contribution to the City of London celebrations, the project has delivered all we wanted and more, creating an exciting opportunity for cross-curricular exploration between humanities and art in the participating schools.”

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London's Burning.

Schools worksheets at St Stephen Walbrook

• Several worksheets for children and/or school groups when visiting St Stephen Walbrook can now be downloaded below. The church also features in The Art of Walking, a GLA resource for schools.
• 
  Schools' Exploration Sheet.pdf
  Schools' Exploration Sheet (Younger Visitors).pdf
  Schools' Exploration Sheet (Samaritans).pdf

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U2 - Walk On.

Stolen Lives: A sense of moral repugnance against modern-day slavery

Stolen Lives is a new web based project which looks at issues of historical and contemporary slavery through music, songs, words, images, film and animation.

‘Stolen Lives’ is a collection of 17 songs and narratives designed to have multiple uses. It is anticipated that the resources will not only be of use to schoolteachers, especially those teaching at Key Stage 3 (ages 11 - 14) and Key Stage 4 (ages 14 – 16), but also to youth groups, museums, music and dance groups, and churches and faith groups. The project is also interactive. It is hoped that users will post their own performances or interpretations of the material that has been put together, allowing for a much broader sharing of ideas and practice.

The pieces provide starting points for discussion and also hope to inspire new creative work in art, dance, drama, images words and music for schools and other groups or individuals interested in the issues. These are all available as a free resource on the Stolen Lives website.

Professor John Oldfield, Director of the Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation (WISE) the University of Hull, is the project leader. Kevin Bales the co-investigator. Music is by Paul Field and visuals by Peter S. Smith.

Behind the project is a serious intent, namely to use music and images to promote awareness of modern-day slavery and – just as important – the pressing need to do something about it. Nineteenth-century abolitionists were well aware of the power of music to persuade and inform: indeed, anti-slavery songs were an important part of their opinion-building activities, particularly in the United States. The same is true of images, whether Wedgwood’s famous image of the kneeling slave, or the cross section of the slave ship ‘Brookes’. ‘Stolen Lives’ follows in the same tradition. Put simply, the aim is to use music and images to inform public opinion and, in the process, create a sense of moral repugnance against modern-day slavery and for slavery in all its forms.

We should never underestimate the power of such aids to change attitudes and impact on policy and policymakers.

As William Wilberforce so memorably put it: ‘You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know’.

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Paul Field - Strange Cargo.

Word 4 Weapons knife awareness workshops

Are you planning your schools Personal, Social and Health education this year? Why not consider having one of Word 4 Weapons one off knife awareness workshops at your school?

 Word 4 Weapons have got funding to deliver these in Lambeth, Enfield, Haringey, Hackney, Barking and Dagenham and Waltham Forest. 

Funding is limited and Word 4 Weapons will be responding on a first come first served basis, so hurry to book your session. To book your schools workshop email Development@word4weapons.co.uk.

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Pink Floyd - Is There Anybody Out There?

Art Competition and Community Festival

Linked to the above festival is a Jubilee/Olympic Art Competition for local schools organised by St Paul's Goodmayes. The participating schools are: Barley Lane; Farnham Green; Mayespark; Goodmayes; and William Torbitt.

The winning entries are being displayed at St Paul's Goodmayes on Sunday 5th August. The presentation ceremony will be from 12 noon to 12:30pm in St Paul's Church with the Mayor of Redbridge presenting the prizes to the winning schools. The competition entries have been judged by commission4mission artists, Henry Shelton and Peter Webb.

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Van Morrison - Days Like This.