Bristol Cathedral Launches Art Commission

Bristol Cathedral has launched a new open call for visual artists to create a permanent artwork that honours the resilience, culture, and faith of African and Afro-Caribbean communities in Bristol.

Bristol Cathedral Launches Art Commission to Honour African and Afro-Caribbean Heritage

The commission invites creative responses to be installed in Bristol Cathedral’s north transept, in dialogue with the existing Edward Colston memorial window,

Artists are invited to sign up for an Ideas Lab on Friday 18 July 2025, where they will hear more about the vision for the work and the application process. This commission forms part of the Cathedral’s wider commitment to racial justice, reconciliation, and truth-telling.

Following the toppling of the Colston Statue in 2020 and the murder of George Floyd, the Bishop of Bristol committed to a series of racial justice actions, including confronting the Church’s ties to slavery. Bristol Cathedral adopted its own Racial Justice Strategy, which includes making the Cathedral more welcoming to all, regardless of heritage, gender, sexuality, or disability

All God’s Children was a temporary exhibition in 2022 that shared new research on the Cathedral’s memorials and wealth linked to enslavement and this latest commission builds on that project

Among the memorials in the cathedral is that of Edward Colston, commemorated in a stained-glass window installed in the 1880s, later damaged during the Second World War and restored.

Feedback from All God’s Children showed that while most visitors do not support removing the window, they want the truth to be told about Colston’s legacy and to see the lives of African and Afro-Caribbean people celebrated in the Cathedral.

The commissioning panel is seeking artist proposals that may reflect:

• Acts of resistance, community, and joy in the face of historic injustice.
• Events such as the Bristol Bus Boycott or the Windrush generations.
• Biblical and theological themes like liberation, reconciliation, and resurrection.
• The diversity of the Black diaspora and the global story of Christianity.

Further details, including how to apply, are available through the events listing, here.