Small boats – a safe haven

During August, Birmingham-based visual artists Jake and Gillian Lever were invited to be Resident Artists at St Davids Cathedral. Jake reflects on the experience.

Over the years Gillian and I have visited the cathedral and the surrounding coastline many times, drawn to its deep spirituality, rich history and incredible beauty. So, when Janet Ingram, the cathedral’s Education and Pilgrimage Officer, invited us to be Artists-in-Residence this summer, we were overjoyed. Janet worked closely with us to organise the two-week residency, weaving us into the summer programme of activities whilst also giving us some time on our own.

As part of the residency, I was invited to create a temporary art installation in the Holy Trinity Chapel. On the altar I placed a flotilla of small, gilded boats, an installation called Safe Haven.

This referenced the fact that, over centuries, thousands of pilgrims used this space to give thanks for safe passage and venerate the nearby shrine of St David. Being able to show my work in such an ancient and beautiful space was a huge joy and privilege.

During the second week of our residency, we led three events in the cathedral: a talk about art and pilgrimage, a day-long drop-in pilgrim badge making workshop for families and a Quiet Afternoon for adults. The talk focussed upon several projects that we have run over the last 20 years including the Soul Boats project with Birmingham Cathedral in 2015 and a more recent postal art project I ran during the pandemic (inspired by St David) called Do the Little Things.

A very busy workshop took place the following day for children, teenagers, parents and carers. Inspired by the tradition of medieval travellers who wore badges to identify themselves as pilgrims, they used recycled card and metal foil to make their own pilgrim badge. Our final event was more reflective. Participants were invited to prayerfully make a Soul Boat of their own as a way of reflecting upon their life’s journey with rich, deep and vulnerable sharing amongst the group.

The memory of all that we experienced at St Davids will stay with us for a very long time and will certainly inform our creative work moving forwards. Gillian and I were so warmly welcomed by everyone we met at St Davids, but we would especially like to thank Janet Ingram whose amazing vision, skill and hard work made this residency possible. You can find out about Jake and Gillian’s work at www.leverarts.org