Update on Community Dyed Silk: Pentacost Colors Installed

Long term blog readers will remember that I spent a day at the First Presbyterian Church of San Bernardino last spring. They received a grant that allows them to bring in an artist for a day to help the parishioners create something to use in their worship. They have a tall sanctuary and a vision of 20 yard swaths of silk, dyed in 4 different palettes of liturgical colors, draped up, over and down the entrance to the front part of the narthex.

Many of you, as well as I, really wanted to see them installed. Well, I had some visitors from that church, including the pastor, at the show I did last week: we all enjoyed reminiscing about what a wonderful time our dyeing day was. Here are a few pix from the drying the washed silk at the end of our time together:

Well, I let my visitors know how much I wanted a picture of them installed, and look what arrived in my email inbox yesterday:

I KNOW! Isn’t it GLORIOUS? I think what really makes it is the hanging vertical stripes: those are vertical blind slats, painted by the worship committee, they are hung so they can move in the breeze. I love how the silk drapes, and it was hung so artfully, that twist in the center really makes it! You can just see at the bottom of the picture the other 3 silks they dyed that day, in colors from different liturgical seasons. I am so happy that it looks so wonderful, and even more happy that months later, the folks I visit with talk about how great that day was!

A few of you asked about the granting institution: it was from Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, the grant page can be found here.

8 Responses

  1. Absolutely stunning! I love all the pictures, seeing the silk billowing outside is visually very exciting. They did a wonderful job with the installation. No wonder you are so pleased!