'Stations of the Cross'
by Patrice Moor
A Fulcrum Art Review by Elizabeth Adekunle
‘As virtuous men pass mildly away, and whisper to their souls to go, whilst some of their sad friends do say, the breath goes now, and some say no’. John Donne
Death is something that many of us find difficult to talk about and the Christian symbol of the cross, a reminder of Jesus’ suffering and death, is an image many non-believers in particular, struggle with.
This exhibition of twelve 18”x14” paintings by Patrice Moor launches us into Easter and the theme of death. The paintings numbered one to twelve refer to the 'Stations of the Cross', but this unconventional depiction takes the theme of the skull of Christ, as its focus. The paintings explore the skull from different perspectives to recreate the scene of Christ’s journey. The gradual rotation of the skull relives Christ’s journey outside the city walls of Jerusalem towards Golgotha, which we are told in all four Gospels means the place of the skull. The paintings show the different angles and perspectives of Christ that onlookers would have seen, with the exception of the last painting no’12, which is an aerial view of Christ on the cross that was inspired by Salvador Dali’s masterpiece Christ of St John of the Cross (1951).
We the viewer are the onlooker on that journey, intimately present and involved as Jesus’ vulnerability is made clear in the fragile skull.
The paintings are intended to be exhibited close together to highlight the series of events, not spread out or seen as separate from one another. Similar to Richard Gilberts Stations of the Cross entitled ‘Envisage: a sculptural journey’ which is an exhibition made up of a series of heads facing different directions. This is currently being exhibited at the Wall space Gallery at All Hallows on the Wall. Patrice shows her paintings as a whole, yet each of her paintings does not correspond to the one before, they are individual moments which lead to individual experiences.
The work is not prescriptive or painted in any particular order. The process that Patrice went through in the 1.5 years it took to paint this collection was organic and informed by her faith. The viewer is therefore invited to take time to absorb these paintings which ought not to be rushed, instead to contemplate the stations as a corresponding whole, embodying the powerful journey to Holy Week.
Self taught artist Patrice, uses oil on linen and delicate brush strokes, using up to 50 brushes a day to create these skulls. The use of contrast helps to create a striking and dramatic realism in which the skulls are set against a very dark brown background, while in other areas part of the canvas itself is exposed in places to create subtlety and authenticity. This helps to achieve a photographic style of painting reminiscent of an X-ray photograph.
The skull itself belonged to a friend of hers and Patrice admits to having been scared of it initially, but quickly became aware of a presence in her studio which quickly turned into a curiosity about the life of the skull. Questions began to emerge for her about whether the person was a man or women, what life they may have led and the age of death. An intimate relationship began to form as she painted the skull and it soon became a very positive object to have around, so much so that the skull now has a permanent home in her studio.
Our fascination with skulls is partly because they are our unseen reality and a reminder of our own inevitable death, but also because our exact time of death is uncertain, it reminds me of an English proverb , ‘Death always comes too early or too late’.
Although the paintings are about Christ’s death and the difficult subject of our own feelings about death, they are surprisingly meditative. The mixture of reds, pinks yellow and purples provides a sophisticated use of colour and depth to these paintings. They are mesmerizing, even beautiful and reassuringly peaceful and seem to point to something beyond the skulls, which transcends our understanding of death. ‘To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace’. (Romans 8:6). This is marked by the aerial view of the final skull.
When Patrice talked about the paintings, she spoke about her interest in death being about the importance of how we live. Death is rooted in a respect for the gift of life. She felt that fear of death is important and has a place because life is valuable. We live with respect for life rather than the fear of death, as we look forward to eternal life in Christ.
As an artist, Patrice believes that while there is a certain amount of self indulgence involved, but if art is approached with integrity, then it can do something for someone else, which is a by product that happens when there is a balance between total self awareness and not being aware of self at all. When this happens, she describes this as a moment when you are totally blessed. The balance between self and other is peace.
Perhaps it is in the times when we recognise our own amazing capacity, made in the image of God and our complete fragility that we begin to enter into that journey that Christ made to the cross. Jesus became a frail human; he took on our form and endured harshness in order for us to see. The first of Jesus’ sayings on the cross is, ‘Father forgive them...’ In that moment there is a balance when attention is off ourselves and on others, when we acknowledge our own fragility, but when we have Gods strength at work in us. It is immensely reassuring for us that the important thing is not about us loving God, but us allowing God to love us in our frailty.
Patrice says that she feels like the luckiest person on earth as a painter, just because it feels right for her and this shows in the care and attention to detail she pours into her paintings. It informs everything she does, even her cooking has improved she says. ‘If you enjoy things that are beautiful you can extend it to anything’. This is what Jesus did. He extended his love to the beauty of God’s creation as he commanded that we ‘Love one another’.
Central to the image of Christ on the Cross is the theme of Love, which points us to something beyond death, which is deeply warming. Love is the reason for Christ’s suffering and it is love that comes out of Christ’s death on the Cross.
The exhibition is on at St Mary the Virgin, Primrose Hill, Elsworthy Road, NW3 3DJ from 22nd March to 2nd April. Open daily from 9 am to 1.30 pm.
Patrice would like ‘The Stations of the Cross’ to travel to other Churches as well.
Patrice is also involved in Charity work, she has worked with Elephant Parade and Ovarian Cancer in Paris and is keen to do more charity work with her paintings.
Elizabeth Adekunle is Archdeacon of Hackney