Visual arts include banners and other types of textile art, painting and posters, sculpture, installations, worship centres, and flowers, as well as the whole area of film, photography and audio-visual displays. These can all be used to inform or shape your worship and prayer experience, from bible studies and meditations to discussion groups. Here we offer a growing resource of ideas, reviews, recommendations and more.

The presence of the light

Paintings are not only for looking at: they can be used to inspire group discussion; as a focus for prayer, either on their own or linked to a display or installation; as a focal point in workshops to inspire other art forms; or to link parts of a sermon.

Have you considered using your church to host an exhibition of paintings with a Christian theme?

Wood carving

Sculptures can be immensely powerful and moving works of art. For those with limited or no eyesight, the opportunity to touch and feel a sculpture can speak volumes. Have you considered using sculptures as centre pieces for your worship, or for a meditation?

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This area of the website covers installations, worship centres, sacred spaces, and labyrinths.

Blessing quilts

We review a book on banner-making, which has experienced a revival in UK churches; find out about Jacqui Parkinson's remarkable textile exhibitions; and Michelle Pickering has instructions for making blessing quilts, which was one of the activities at the 2023 ArtServe festival.

 

Posters

Have you ever walked past a church and not even realised it was open? Have you caught sight of a striking poster that made you stop and wonder?

Malvern stained glass

Glass art includes stained glass in all its forms, fused glass and similar techniques.

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Flower arranging is a highly under-rated skill and often a source of strong debate! Here we would like to publish ideas and tips from experienced arrangers, with photographs and step-by-step guides to making arrangements for your church that will give pleasure to all who see them.

Paul banner

Ideas for using film in church, suggestions for using film and TV programmes in discussion groups, and more. Good photography can be as poignant and as powerful as any other art form. You may already use images for meditation of as a focus for prayer. Have you considered hosting a photography exhibition in your church?