A new sculpture and sound installation has been placed in Lichfield Cathedral for the next two weeks. The sculpture is a bronze cast representation based upon the concept of Mary Magdalene’s suffering at the Crucifixion of Christ. This is represented through the reduction, distortion and abstraction of the realistic physiognomy of the portrait, which has been designed to convey both powerful and poignant emotional qualities. The representation of the portrait has been developed in line with the historic portrayals of Mary Magdalene produced since the Renaissance, initially in Italy and thereafter in Northern Europe, both as wood carvings and cast works. These include the screaming depiction of Mary Magdalene by Del Arca in his interpretation of the “Lamentation of the Dead Christ”. In line with this legacy the current work reinterprets this inheritance through 20th and 21st century visual means (such as the inheritance of cubist form, and the development of abstraction as key to the expression of emotive qualities). The power of the work is duly modified and complemented by the inclusion of sound alongside the sculpture. The sculptural work was completed first, and then the composer produced the companion sound piece as a second element. The sound is constant meditative composition, which ebbs between and alludes to different emotional qualities during the duration of the composition, which in its entirety runs for approximately eight hours. The composition is intended to be especially quiet – intended almost as a whisper. The sculpture which is located in the south trancept of the Cathedral will be on display until the 2nd Arpil.

The sculpture is by Peter Walker and the sound composition by David Harper.