The Church of England has embarked on a project to conserve church murals, some dating back over a century, in a project partially funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the J. Paul Getty Trust.
In particular the Church is seeking to conserve some of the works of Walter Starmer, an artist active at around the time of the First World War. Some of his work can be found in the Lady Chapel at St Jude’s Church in Hampstead Garden, London.
Commissioned after the war in memory of fallen soldiers, the murals in the chapel depict famous women from the Bible and from Christian history.
The cleaning and conservation work is being partially funded by the Church’s new conservation grant scheme, using funds from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The scheme’s purpose is not confined to conservation, but is also meant to pass on skills to the next generation.
As such much of the work will be done by six students studying for a master’s degree in conservation. Already the students have spent six weeks doing field work at the chapel and have been learning about the techniques used by Starmer to create the works.
Lecturer Sibylla Tringham is overseeing the students. She said, “This is a really wonderful site for the students to learn the practical aspects of wall painting conservation. They have been looking closely at the paintings to understand how they were made and the ways that they are deteriorating. It has been a fantastic learning opportunity for them.”
The Bishop of Edmonton, Anderson Jeremiah, who viewed the conservation efforts, commented, “The wall paintings in the Lady Chapel of St Jude’s were painted at the start of the 20th century and are a remarkable tribute to the role of women in the Church of England and wider society.”
Church heritage funding has been used for a range of projects up and down the country, including the preservation of historic pipe organs, monuments, tombs and stained-glass windows.