St. George's Celebrates 175th With Fabric Art Display

From Arts in Guelph - September/October, 2007

by Anna Contini

St. George's Anglican Church in Guelph continues to celebrate its milestone 175th Anniversary with a year-long line up of special events, guest speakers, concerts and presentations. One of the upcoming highlights will be Threads of Praise, a display of liturgical fabric art from Anglican churches all across Canada. The exhibition, sponsored by the Chancel Guild of St. George's, will take place October 13 to 21, 2007.

Textiles have played a very important role in the beautification of places of worship, particularly in the Anglican Church where one can find glorious altar frontals and banners, handmade kneeling cushions and elegant hand-crafted clergy vestments. For generations, artists have created such items with skill and devotion and yet often these articles go unrecognized. One of the goals of the exhibition is to highlight some of the creative works of Canadian fabric artists, says Nancy McPherson-Ball, one of the co-ordinators for the project and member of the Chancel Guild. She has been working alongside Nancy Walcot to convene the multi-faceted exhibition.

Planning began two years ago with a call for submissions that went out to all the Anglican Churches. An eight-member selection committee embarked on the "hunting and gathering" phase, and are very pleased with the end result. "The generosity of the other churches has been overwhelming," says McPherson-Ball adding that "participants are delighted to have their creative works shown." In many cases, pieces will arrive only about a week prior to the event as they are an integral and useful part of regular services at their home churches.

In total, the exhibition will feature 50 to 60 works of art. Three cathedrals - St. Paul's in London, Ontario, Christ's Church in Hamilton and St. James in Toronto - have loaned pieces as well as have each of the Anglican churches of Guelph. Individuals and parishes from Whitehorse to Newfoundland are sending items for display.

The flagship piece on permanent display in the Kirk Chapel at St. George's is a magnificent quilted dossal curtain and altar frontal designed by Nancy Lou Patterson, a well-known liturgical artist from Waterloo. Both pieces were constructed and quilted by Isobel King of Guelph. The large, colourful dossal hanging depicts the four seasons of the earth year, in the form of four squares. The altar frontal symbolizes the Christian year, with eight crosses representing Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Passiontide, Easter, Pentecost and Trinitytide. While an integral component of the exhibition, the pieces will continue to grace the Chapel, providing inspiration and beauty for many years to come.

Threads of Praise promises a rare glimpse into the world of liturgical fabric art. The display is sure to be of interest not only to quilters and fabric artists but also to members of the general public. Exhibition hours October 13 to 21 are Sundays 1 to 4 p.m. and Monday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. While there is no admission fee, freewill offerings are much appreciated. Tea will be served in the Rectory. In mounting this unique exhibition, the Chancel Guild is making a major contribution to St. George's 175th Anniversary celebrations.

For more information about Threads of Praise please contact St. George's Church 519-822-1366.