We will remember

Wednesday, 13th May 2009

Art and Memory: New perspectives on memorial art
West Dean, Nr Chichester, until 1 November

There are those who haunt ancient churchyards in search of elegant epigraphs or curious carvings on lichened gravestones, but many focus only on what makes a good memorial when forced to do so by bereavement, and the desire to commemorate justly someone we loved. A few years ago we might have been forgiven for thinking that the fine art of letter-cutting was moribund, polished off by the dead hand of Church officialdom with its rules and regulations and its mania for neat, ‘easy to maintain’ burial plots, devoid of all interest and idiosyncracy. Then along came Memorials by Artists under the evangelical aegis of Harriet Frazer, and if anyone is still under the illusion that the making of memorials is a dying art they only have to visit the Art and Memory exhibition at West Dean, in the lee of the Sussex Downs, to see how green it flourishes.

There, in a natural amphitheatre of sheep-cropped park and spacious gardens, are 52 contemporary examples of the letter-cutter’s art, each commemorating something held precious — an individual, a group, a thought or prayer. The letter-cutters — all of whom work with Memorials by Artists — were given a loose brief, to make something that each felt strongly about on a memorial theme, with none of the normal restrictions imposed upon them (including cost). West Dean was the creation and home of Edward James, poet and patron of the Surrealists, and a man passionate about lettering, carving, printing and typography, whose spirit this exhibition amply celebrates. A few pieces will remain there in perpetuity while others are dispersed around the country to create a national collection of contemporary memorial art — and to show us what our fine carvers are capable of.

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