Canton Museum of Art Presents "Illuminating the Word: The Saint John's Bible"

Medieval craft meets modern spiritual vision in the monumental pages from the first handwritten, illustrated bible in more than 500 years

Ancient inks, calligraphy, 24-carat gold leaf, and more than twelve years of artistic and spiritual meditation come together in Illuminating the Word: The Saint John's Bible, a monumental exhibition opening December 5th, 2013, at the Canton Museum of Art. The Saint John's Bible is the first handwritten and illuminated (illustrated / decorated) Bible to be commissioned by a Benedictine monastery in more than five hundred years. All the seventy-three books of the Old and New Testaments presented in seven volumes of 1,127 pages; produced using entirely medieval techniques and materials. This magnificent exhibit features sixty-eight original manuscript pages in thirty-four displays, and is the first touring exhibit to show pages from all completed volumes. Also on display will be the tools, sketches, and materials used to create the work, as well as rare books telling the story of this vast creation. The exhibition will remain on view through March 2nd, 2014.

«This exhibit represents a truly monumental achievement that intersects Christianity and world religions in a contemporary masterpiece of medieval craftsmanship, materials, and calligraphy,» said M.J. Albacete, Executive Director of the Canton Museum of Art.

In 1995, the community of Saint John's Abbey and University in Collegeville, Minnesota initiated a major undertaking to produce a contemporary illuminated Bible using entirely medieval techniques and materials. The actual pages were created by a team of twenty-three professional scribes, artists, and assistants in a scriptorium in Wales, under the artistic direction of renowned calligrapher Donald Jackson, Senior Scribe to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth's Crown Office at the House of Lords in the United Kingdom.

Completed in 2011, this unique undertaking to create The Saint John's Bible combines a centuries-old tradition of craftsmanship with the latest capabilities of computer technology and electronic communication — and the ultimate creation is timeless. The words are handwritten on vellum (calfskin) using hand-cut quills fashioned from turkey, swan or goose feathers; 19th century Chinese lamp black ink sticks; and ancient inks hand-ground from natural minerals and stones such as lapis lazuli, malachite, and vermillion. The pages are illuminated with the brilliance of 24-carat gold leaf, silver leaf, and platinum. The complete work includes 1,127 handwritten pages and over 160 major artworks.

The exhibition at the Canton Museum of Art will include original folios (pages) from all seven volumes of The Saint John's Bible which make up the complete Old and New Testament: Pentateuch, Historical Books, Wisdom Books, Psalms, Prophets, Gospels and Acts, and Letters and Revelation. Sixty-eight pages will be on view, including thirty-two vivid illuminations that share the pages with the graceful script.

Canton Museum of Art Presents "Illuminating the Word:
The Saint John's Bible"

Source: marketwired.com