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A sermon in concrete

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A sermon in concrete

“One of the great interiors of the last 50 years.”

Andrew Eberlin
Feb 28, 2023
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A sermon in concrete

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I had a day in Bristol last week. The morning was devoted to photographing James and his vibes on level 8 of a concrete car park. My afternoon commitment was cancelled so I had a few hours to spare before seeing old friends in the evening.

I decided to visit Clifton Cathedral. I have long admired the exterior but had inexplicably never been inside.

I’m very glad I did.

I stepped inside and took an awed intake of breath. This is my kind of interior. I glanced around and admired the beautiful simplicity of the concrete, the light and the space.

I was the only person inside.

I had the whole cathedral to myself.

I had the time to take it all in, to amble slowly around and look, really look, without interruption.

Pevsner’s Architectural Guide to Bristol wrote that the Cathedral was a “sermon in concrete”.

1

What a fine description.

Mike Jenner called it “one of the great interiors of the last 50 years in Britain”.

I’m inclined to agree.

In awe

I’m not a practicing Christian but I was brought up in a Church of England household and the stories are part of who I am.

The meditative qualities and splendour of a place of worship speak to me. Not on behalf of a known religion, but in my own contemplative way.

A visit to Coventry Cathedral in my teens is one of the most profound experiences of my life. The spatial beauty of the building awed me.

I had visited with my father, an architect. He designed a number of Catholic Churches in the 1970’s-80’s in the East Midlands (I don’t think I need an analyst to explain why I am drawn to such buildings).

Like the architect of Clifton Cathedral, Ronald Weeks, my father wasn’t a Catholic and maybe this helped.

Ronald Weeks thought so:

“It's surprising how much people take for granted. Not being Catholics we could ask all sorts of questions which appeared naïve – like – “What is an altar?”, in which one would get conflicting answers... each question would lead to a discussion which in turn helped to banish pre-conceived notions so we could plan right from scratch.”

2

Not taking things for granted. It’s good advice for many things.

Clifton Roman Catholic Cathedral was completed in 1973 for the sum of £601,268. It was described as the “ecclesiastical bargain of the 1970’s”.

It is the first Catholic Church built in the 1970’s to be Grade II* listed.

It was the first Cathedral to be built under new guidelines from the Second Vatican Council which wanted to make the congregation feel more involved.

1

From 100 Years, 100 Buildings on the 20th Century Society website

2

Wikipedia has a full description of the Cathedral’s history and build

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A sermon in concrete

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Harry Watson
Writes Harry's Meanderings
Feb 28Liked by Andrew Eberlin

Wow, what a stunning building. As with you I am not someone of faith but to repeat your word this is awe inspiringly beautiful.

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Mark McGuire
Writes Street Photography
Sep 6Liked by Andrew Eberlin

Terrific photos of a very photogenic building. When visiting art galleries, I often find that the building itself is as deserving of attention as the art it exhibits.

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