Arts & Spirituality

Arts & Spirituality

"One has to be so terribly religious as an artist. I always feel as if I stand naked for the fire of God to go through me" (D.H.Lawrence)

All of our parishes have a longing to celebrate the spiritual dimension of the Arts and engage and foster the rich artistic life and communities here in Cornwall. It is all about reaching higher and delving deeper, being creative and exploring our spiritual life. It is about love, healing and engaging with the community. As the former bishop of Oxford, Lord Harries of Pentregarth, observed, “it is the arts that engage the most sensitive, serious and creative side of millions today”

To this end we have been supporting and developing a range of activities and events:

The Arts and Spirituality Trust
The 6 Churches Arts & Literary Festival
The St Endellion Festival
St Endellion Golden Jubilee Appeal
Arts in the Community
Can you help?

The Arts and Spirituality Trust

Our work began in 2007 when the priest-in-charge, John May, drew together a steering group, with membership from all round the 6 churches. We wanted to explore ways in which we can use the Arts for spiritual searching, the enlivening of worship, healing, mission, the ministry to holidaymakers and engagement with schools, the retired and the local community. To help us realise this great vision for the arts and spirituality, we are now forming a Charitable Trust whose task is to continue this work and to offer support for the six churches to reach out to the residents and visitors of all ages by means of a varied programme of creative and educational artistic activities and productions.

The 6 Churches Arts & Literary Festival

The largest single initiative of the Arts & Spirituality group so far has been to launch a new Autumn Festival.
The first `Arts and Literary Festival’ was held from the 27th October to the 1st November 2009, featuring talks by authors and filmmakers including Marina Lewycka, Jonathan Stedall, Giles Andraea and Justin Cartwright, Susie Boyt, not to mention Richard & Judy Madeley. Among the varied workshops were sessions for both children and adults on such diverse arts as iconography, poetry and painting on glass and silk. Local authors such as John Betjeman and Charles Causley were celebrated and exhibitions and performances took place across the six churches and their local communities. Stories were told and shared in the Port Gaverne Hotel one evening and local beer was consumed. It was all a great success!

We hope that this festival will become a welcome annual event, growing in scope and vigour and also helping to foster and demonstrate the wealth of local talent. The next Autumn Arts Festival will take place from 27th-31st October 2010 and will have a more visual emphasis than the last. 2011 will be an all-out Lit. Event again!
If you can help us in any way, please contact: Sue Harbour, tel. 01208 862423

The St Endellion Festival

There is a spirit in St Endellion Church, on which we all feed. The place is a magnet for many of us as well as a refuge. The festival concerts are unique in blending professional and amateur yet the place seems to raise us to musical heights we find difficult to repeat anywhere else. Richard Hickox, CBE (1948-2008).

The St Endellion Music Festivals take place at Easter and in the Summer every year in the Collegiate Church of St Endelienta, bringing together a wide range of exciting musicians from all over the world.

The Saint Endellion Summer Festival celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008. It began life when a musical priest, Roger Gaunt, was inspired to invite a group of college friends down to help him renovate St Endellion’s derelict rectory. Slowly it grew and evolved from a group of friends putting on small-scale concerts and an annual play to include an orchestra and a chorus. And from the ranks of its enthusiastic participants emerged a young Cambridge graduate and organist called Richard Hickox who took over from Roger Gaunt as Artistic Director in the mid Seventies, when he also instituted a sister festival at Easter.

Although Richard’s tragic death in 2008 has been an enormous loss, we are determined to ensure that the festivals will continue to flourish, and after the success of the concerts of 2009, we look forward to the festivals of 2010 under the direction of Mark Padmore.

Future dates:
52nd Summer Festival 27 July to 6 August 2010
38th Easter Festival 10 April to 17 April 2011
53rd Summer Festival 26 July to 5 August 2011

http://www.endellionfestivals.org.uk/index.html

St Endellion Golden Jubillee Appeal

As we embark upon a second half-century, we have developed a renewed vision of how the Collegiate Church of St Endellion and adjoining buildings may provide a unique centre for fresh and vigorous artistic and spiritual expression. The vision is not only to provide the Music Festivals with the outstanding home that they deserve but also to create a well-appointed community facility that enables a year-round arts programme linked to retreats and courses as well as providing the local area with valuable rehearsal and meeting facilities.

The St Endellion Golden Jubilee appeal is seeking to raise £1.5 million in order to realise this vision and to provide:

Accommodation and facilities for young musicians and youth groups;
Adaptable space for rehearsals, workshops and recordings;
Working capital necessary to market and administer the 'campus' in the early years;
A Bursary Fund to enable young people, who may not be able to afford the cost, to participate in the Festivals and the other events which will be developed within the Arts and Spirituality programme.

For further information see: click here

Contact:
Martin Cooke - Appeal Treasurer - Lion House, Tattenhall Road, Tattenhall, Chester CH3 9QH - 01829 770955 - martin.cooke@endellionfestivals.org.uk

Arts in the Community

‘We are engaged with fostering the arts within the local community and more widely in many different ways.
These include the Open the Book dramatised re-telling of bible stories at St Minver and St Kew primary schools, the All Saints Children’s Drama group begun in 2007, and welcoming local schools and youth organizations on visits and study days to our churches.

For further details of these groups please see the Children & Family page.

Among the many local and regional artists and organisations that the churches have had the pleasure of hosting or working with are:
the Perceval Entertainers,
Betjeman Society,
Charles Causley Society,
Cornwall Ceramics Group,
West Country Embroiderers,
poet Victoria Field,
author & documentary film-maker Jonathan Stedall,
authors:
Patrick Gale,
David Whitley,
Susie Boyt,
Marina Lewyscka,
musicians The Devil’s Violin Company,
textile designer Jenni Milne,
glass artist Victoria Meade,
artists Caroline Cleave and Barbara Hawkin,
Port Isaac author John Cleave and many more.

Can you help?

In order to realise the vision we have of the Churches engagement with the arts across our local community, we are dependent upon the skills and time of many volunteers. From the artists willing to give of their time and skill to those with expertise in publicity, finance or event management to those simply willing to give of their time to help steward events on the day.

We are always delighted to hear from anyone able to offer help and assistance for the realisation of any of our current activities or future events. Please contact any member of the clergy team or parish administrators in the first instance.