ROMAN REPORT
An altarpiece made now Paul Robinson on commissioning a portrait of St Bede
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the deaths of everyone at he US Conference that monastery due to some of Catholic Bishops’ kind of 'plague', leaving only influential 1977 himself and the Abbot (St book Environment and Ceolfrith). During the rest Art in Catholic Worship of his life, he accomplished calls for “fewer objects an enormous amount of on the walls and in the scholarship and spiritual corners” of our churches. writings and through his St Bede’s, Clapham Park, teaching, which he loved clearly wasn’t on message so much, passed on to so earlier this year when a many the invaluable riches highly embellished object of Christianity. And all this was installed in one of its in the challenging climate corners. The object is an of the north east of England altar, at the centre of which during the ebb and flow of a is an item that, in centuries battle between the growing past, wasn’t unusual: a Church of Christ and the specially commissioned powers of paganism. In my painting of the church’s painting, in the act of giving a patron saint. blessing, St Bede holds what The painting (and I hope would be assumed to its frame) is the work of be his ecclesiastical history, James Tyldesley, a longwhich to a large extent standing parishioner at St describes that battle, and the Bede’s. Parish Priest, Father cross, signifying the victor of Marcus Holden, offered that battle. His prayers and Tyldesley the commission intercession for our beloved of an altarpiece for a side James Tyldesley’s painting of St Bede: ‘We enjoy and protect a England have rarely been altar dedicated to St Bede phenomenal legacy of Catholic art stretching back centuries…’ more needed.” earlier this year (funded by Beyond these practical challenges, As part of the exploration process a legacy bequeathed to the LMS by the late Mr John Arnell), with an ultimate Tyldesley created a large number art commissioned by the Church completion date of 27 May, St Bede's of drawings and small paintings. also raises a broader consideration: feast day; Tyldesley had about three “A commission for an image of a shouldn’t there be more of it? We months to complete both the painting man who lived some 1400 years ago enjoy and protect a phenomenal obviously posed some basic questions. legacy of Catholic art stretching back and the frame. Art commissioned for the Church What did he look like? Do we have any centuries, but just as the Old Guy raises several challenges, including information at all about his personal with a Beard was once a young man, considerable practical decisions for a characteristics? Of course, we know what is now ancient was once new. As painter. In Tyldesley’s words, “When equally little about many of the great Tyldesley puts it “the Church could you’re asked to do something like saints, though nevertheless the history have stopped producing any liturgical an image of St Bede you think, well of art is full of images depicting them. music 800 years ago; the 12th or where do I start, what right have I to St Bede died when he was about 65 13th Century had enough liturgical conjure up an image and say ‘Oh this years old and my first decision was to music even then to last for the rest of is St Bede’?…. If you look at the past present the image of a man in more or history; at any point the Church could images of St Bede most of them have less the prime years of his life. I also have said ‘we’ve got enough we don’t opted for an old guy with a long beard. felt that, given the petitionary nature of need any more’, but that would have I definitely wanted to keep away from the altarpiece, I should try to create an meant we didn’t have the great music the Old Guy With a Beard and the image which would engender contact of Byrd, Tallis, Fauré… We’ve got sense that he must have been a kindly with the saint… St Bede was taken masses of great music, architecture old chap just sitting there writing and as a child to the monastery at Jarrow and art but we should be itching to put and, barely in his youth, he witnessed our two penneth in as well”. reading books”.
WINTER 2021
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