Cathedral Colston window New art to celebrate Black community

A 'SIGNIFICANT' new work of art is to be permanently installed inside Bristol Cathedral, in front of a stained-glass window that commemorates the slave trader Edward Colston.

- Tristan CORK

The permanent artwork will 'celebrate the resilience, culture and faith of African and Afro-Caribbean communities in Bristol', and the cathedral is opening up applications for artists to come up with ideas and potentially be commissioned to create the work of art, which will then be installed and form an integral part of the Grade I-listed building.

Cathedral bosses said they were keeping the stained-glass window which honours Edward Colston, but the artwork would be 'in dialogue' with the memorial.

"The commission invites creative responses to be installed in the Cathedral's north transept, in dialogue with the existing Edward Colston memorial window," a spokesperson said.

"Artists are invited to sign up for an Ideas Lab on Friday, July 18, where they will hear more about the vision for the work and the application process. This commission forms part of the Cathedral's wider commitment to racial justice, reconciliation, and truth-telling," she added.

"The project builds on previous initiatives, including All God's Children, a long running exhibition that explores the impact of the transatlantic slave economy on the Cathedral's life, past and present.