The coronavirus pandemic has affected everyone. All of us have been changed in some way, either through illness, isolation or loss of employment.
The coronavirus pandemic has affected everyone. All of us have been changed in some way, either through illness, isolation or loss of employment. But lockdown has also given us the opportunity to re-evaluate our goals and discover new ways of connecting.
And that's why we are really excited to be launching a new community art project with a group of textile artists based on the borders of Essex and East London called The Material Girls.
Called Good Lament and Hard Hope the project explores the challenges of the pandemic and wants to help enable people to express their grief and hope through hand-made fabric postcards. The postcards will then be used as part of an art installation in the Cathedral in the summer of 2021.
The making of the postcards is intended to help people express their feelings, to reflect our individual and corporate experiences during this ongoing pandemic. Aside from the two strong themes of lament and hope, the other theme is the environment. The healing power of nature has come to the fore in many people’s minds during this pandemic, but also our need to care for, love and tend it better. In the making of these fabric postcards, you are asked to consider the environment, to reuse and recycle material and to avoid any plastics.
Everyone is invited to get involved and send us their postcards. Do look at the Cathedral’s Facebook page @chelmsfordcathedral for ideas and inspiration. But you don’t have to be great at sewing to join in. You can sew or glue fabric together and even draw on the fabric with pens. Children are encouraged to take part too. There is lots of help including a template to get you started. See the Cathedral’s website or the Material Girls Facebook page.
Please send your finished postcards to Canon Imogen Nay c/o Chelmsford Cathedral, 53 New Street, Chelmsford. CM1 1TY by 1st June.