Links to the poems
To see the poems Alwyn has written for each and every painting in the exhibition, go here.
Some of the paintings have a longer reflection as well as a poem . To see these, read on.
Links to the reflections
Twelve works from the Methodist Modern Art Collection
The church of St Mary’s is the oldest building in Guildford, with parts dating from Saxon times. After it became a joint Anglican/Methodist church in 2013, it underwent a full and imaginative restoration which both rendered it useful for many exciting new developments and also further enhanced its beauty.
The church was then chosen to be the venue for an exhibition of 25 works of art from the Methodist Modern Art Collection during Lent 2026, with the title ‘From darkness …. to Light’. As a poet, I was invited to write poems to accompany each work of art, and these poems, along with some of the pictures from the exhibition, was published on 26 February 2026 in a book entitled From darkness to light (ISBN 978-1-906856-96-0).
I have selected a dozen of these works for short reflections, to illustrate how poetry can lead us into an even deeper experience of art. One easy way of accessing these reflections is to go through Art UK, because it shows the paintings clearly,.
Alternatively, you can follow the individual links below by clicking on the title of the painting:
- The Raising of Lazarus by John Reilly
- Good Friday: Walking on Water, 2006 by Maggi Hambling
- Christ enters Jerusalem by Sadao Watanabe
- The washing of the Feet by Ghislaine Howard
- Fool of God by Mark Cazalet
- Judas Iscariot betrayed our Lord Jesus Christ for R.3.00 by John Muafangejo
- The Stripping of Our Lord by Philip Le Bas
- The Cross over the City by Michael Edmonds
- The Deposition by Graham Sutherland
- The supper at Emmaus by Ceri Richards and also by Roy de Maistre
- Dalit Madonna by Jyoti Sahi