Artist’s mosaic brings life of saint into the digital age
Pete’s ‘coherent artwork’ modern celebration of scholar’s legacy
belinda.dickins@jpimedia.co.uk
A MAJOR new artwork created by a city artist celebrates the scholar St Jerome in a mosaic bringing his works to the digital age.
Unveiled at St John’s Catholic Cathedral yesterday, the 1,600th anniversary of St Jerome’s death, Little Bits of God created by Pete Codling tells the story of the Bible using the smalti mosaic technique.
Jerome, who lived from 347AD to 420AD, translated the Bible from the original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek into Latin, the first scholar to do so systematically.
His Vulgate translation became the standard biblical text of the Roman Catholic Church and is still used today.
Sponsored by Bible Society and the Catholic Church in England and Wales, the mosaic created by Pete Codling is celebrating his achievement, depicting Jerome with the traditional symbols associated with him of a lion, a book and a skull.
Pete said: ‘In this contemporary mosaic the book pages on his desk blend into a computer keyboard and his stylised quill pen, or stylus, remind the viewer that Bible reading, learning and studying also now take place online via the internet. The Bible speaks now through the digital as well as the printed text.’
Another modern reference that picks up the theme of mortality and suffering is the depiction of three-yearold Syrian refugee boy Alan Kurdi, drowned in 2015 as his family attempted to leave Turkey.
Biblical figures including Jesus, Mary and St Matthew are also represented.
Pete added: ‘The idea behind this artwork has challenged me technically as well as artistically. My research for this artwork took me to Ravenna and Venice in search of materials, technique and craftsmanship.
‘I wanted to portray the Bible visually, and convey the journey of translation from the oral tradition to the digital age in one coherent artwork.’
The mosaic stands on a pedestal which is an integral part of the work. It is more than two metres tall and is formed of 10 panels created from thousands of pieces of coloured glass.
It is currently in St John’s Catholic Cathedral in Bishop Crispian Way, and next year it will begin a tour of England and Wales.