St Cyriac’s is a jewel: an ancient English village church and a community of which I was a part for 5 years. Situated in Lacock, Wiltshire (a place full of medieval houses and National Trust pilgrims), the church reflects the deep and brilliant hues of lives coloured by religious tradition. In 2018, I was appointed by the Parochial Church Council to work creatively with the leadership team and the community, and I ended up taking over 3,000 photographs of life at St Cyriac’s over 2 years or so. These photographs have had the quality in my head and heart of not going away, becoming compounded by historical photographs and local stories, and revealing an absolute abundance of Lacock as a place of faith through time.

My photographs began as social documentary: an insider view which followed the church year and its festivals, my fellow choir members, my children in Sunday school, my husband – the vicar – and his team. I received a community grant to produce an art work for the Remembrance celebrations of 2019, which culminated in the local family portrait series and lenticular installation Remembrance Rood Screen. I spearheaded the re-envisioning of the church’s visitor material, from website to guidebook and all the 40 postcards in between. The final output will be a limited edition photobook publication, We Went to Church on Monday (2023), a creative exploration of layered history and living symbolism in this wonderful place.