| Exhibition details | Venue: York St Mary's, Castlegate, York Dates: 16 June - 29 October 2006 Times: Daily from 10am - 4pm Cost: Free! Visitor info: 01904 687687 |
St. Mary’s is a decommissioned church in Castlegate, an area very close to Clifford’s Tower. The installation is site specific, and Echo has been created by Susie MacMurray, one of Britain’s emerging artists. MacMurray is following on from her recent work ‘Flock’, at the Manchester Art Gallery – an exhibition which was shortlisted for the 2005 Jerwood Drawing Prize. She has also had international shows in France and Italy.
 | | Hair nets filled with horse hair |
The exhibition is not large, but it is fascinating to pay a visit to. It uses discarded rosin-covered horsehair from violin bows, along with hairnets. The hairnets were chosen for their delicate nature, and the violin bow hair was chosen because of its use in making music. The venue of St. Mary’s church is fascinating. It is a deconsecrated church, one of 19 parish churches that have survived out of 40 that existed in medieval York. The bulk of the building dates from the early 13th century. Alterations were made in the 14th and 15th centuries, when the 154-foot spire was built. | "The exhibition uses discarded rosin-covered horsehair from violin bows, along with hairnets" | |
St. Mary’s was founded around 1020, and was possibly built on the site of a Saxon church. St. Mary’s continued to be used as a family church well into the 20th century – however, the Reformation in the 16th century removed religious images on wall paintings, painted wooden screens, stained glass, fine metalwork and statues. The church became redundant in 1958, and became a heritage centre between 1975 and 2001. It is now part of the York Museums Trust. Echo’s creator Susie MacMurray says: “As a place of worship that has existed for nearly a millennium, St. Mary’s contains a wealth of history built up over the centuries. Archaeological and social histories can be pieced together by sifting and extrapolating, but intangible and equally significant things will also have taken place there. “Untraceable sounds, experiences and emotions that science cannot pin down will have existed in the space and a kind of ephemeral essence remains. ‘Echo’ is a response to St. Mary’s as a kind of vessel for the traces of profound contemplation, sound, memory, history and human faith.” Robin Lewis | 
