It's the summer holidays - and from art, crafts, play and history treks - there's a whole host of fun taking place at Worcester Cathedral.
The jam-packed season of events is now underway with the Art in Sacred Spaces exhibition running until August 30 during normal visiting hours (10am–5pm Monday–Saturday & 1–3pm Sunday).
The exhibition will showcase the work of 11 professional visual artists, three local schools and a community art installation, totalling more than 50 pieces of wonderful art around the cathedral. There will be a diverse range of media on show including textiles, glass, sculpture, paintings and fashion design.
There will be plenty for families to enjoy, including:
The Buzz
Monday August 14, 10.30am–3pm in the West Gardens
At this family friendly event we will be learning about the amazing insect, the bee. Did you know that bees pollinate over 85 per cent of food crops intended for human consumption, and over the past 15 years they have been disappearing from our eco system? Join us to find out what you can do to help them thrive in our gardens and have a go at creating bee bombs, bee baths and other bee-related activities.
There will also be family summer visual arts, including:
The Hands of God
Tuesday August 15, 10.30am–3pm in the Undercroft Learning Centre
Come and join in this family friendly drop-in arts & crafts workshop (for all ages), inspired by Michelangelo’s ‘The Creation of Adam’. We will use collage and other art materials to create our very own masterpieces good enough for the Sistine Chapel, Rome!
Pop Goes the Cathedral
Wednesday August 16, 10.30am–3pm in the Undercroft Learning Centre.
In this family friendly drop-in workshop (for all ages) we will be making art that is bright, colourful and fun. Based on the work of famous Pop Artists Andy Warhol and Roy Litchenstein, let’s have a go at creating our very own big, bold and beautiful artworks using images from the cathedral.
The Feast
Tuesday August 22, 10.30am–3pm in the Undercroft Learning Centre
In this drop-in workshop (for all ages) we will be using famous paintings, such as Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The Last Supper’ and other artworks that feature food as inspiration. If you were hosting a special banquet, who would you invite? What would you eat and why? Join us to create a large collective artwork of food and guests from your imaginary supper.
Make an Impressionism
Wednesday August 23, 10.30am–3pm in the Undercroft Learning Centre
Why not come and spend some time with us at this family friendly drop-in workshop (for all ages), where we will make art based on the work of Claude Monet & Vincent Van Gogh. Have a go at making your own version of ‘Starry Night’ and recreate ‘Waterlillies’.
Summer Craft & Gift Fayre in the Cloister
Saturday August 12, 10am-4pm
Browse over 20 quality craft and gift stalls set in the beautiful medieval cloisters.
The History of Fashion, an Illustrated Talk by Anne Walter
Tuesday August 15, 10.30am-12pm
From Pisanello to Hockney; from Shakespeare to McQueen; learn how fashions have reflected the zeitgeist of the age and have helped us to portray who we are. Learn how ladies in the seventeen hundreds were pinned into their clothes each day by their dressers; how the flapper girls were called flapper girls because they sat on the flaps on motor bikes and how the women of the first world war freed enough metal to build a battle ship by exchanging their metal -lined corsets for brassieres.
Far from being a frivolous subject, fashion is, and always has been, a crucially important part of society and culture, worthy of close attention.
100 Years of Fashion, Fashion Show
Thursday August 24, 2pm
Join us in the Chapter House for a Fashion show of ladies’ fashions from the 1880s to the 1980s.
See a Victorian dress worn by the wife of Geoffrey Baxter (the Whitefriars creator of glass), 1920s Flapper dresses, a 1930s wedding dress and a 1960s dress by Biba to name but a few.
It promises to be a fashionable trip down memory lane!
Worcester Festival
The cathedral will be joining the Worcester Festival fortnight fun this year, from Saturday 12 - Monday August 28.
There will also be the usual daily Turn up for a Tour at 11am and 2.30pm Monday – Saturday, library tours on selected dates and the famous Christ in Majesty sculpture will be available to view in College Hall throughout August.
For further information, please visit www.worcestercathedral.co.uk/summer2023
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here