I fancied a train ride today, so I went down to Newport in South Wales. I even managed to cover some track that was new to me – Hereford to Newport.
One reason for going there was St Woolos' Cathedral. Ever since I learnt that it isn't the Victorian rebuild I had imagined and has a history dating back to the sixth century, I have wanted to see it.
The photo above shows its twelfth-century Romanesque portal and the arches from the same period in the nave. The building is no larger than many parish churches, but it still impresses.
And the one below shows John Piper's window and decoration behind the altar. The other windows at the east end of the cathedral are largely of clear glass, which I have come to like more and more. It suggests a God, not of gothic obscurantism, but of light and reason.
This is really great stuff, thanks for posting. Readers may or may not know that John Piper is known mainly as a printmaker, with churches being a staple subject. This culminated in his 1964 portfolio 'A Retrospect of Churches', which comprised 24 lithographs. Piper continued to depict churches up until his death in 1992, he covered off the length and breadth of the UK, but with an emphasis on the East Midlands, especially Rutland and Lincolnshire.
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