Fred’s Journey
London England
This church, obliterated during the Battle of Britain in August 1940, was a favorite of high church Episcopalians from the Pacific Northwest. In 1933 I had worshipped there many times, a special wrench to find this favorite ‘Fortress of the Faith’ gone.
–Fred McDonald
Artist’s Statement
- Armelle Le Roux
From
There were only five of these shards, and two were still embedded in the lead that holds stained-glass panes together. Fred kept the shards in an envelope he had picked up in the rubble of St. John’s. That envelope spoke of lighter times. The panel portrays the end of an era: a vanished church, a lost paradise. At top, the bomb-shaped leaded fragment threatens the pre-war lightness, while the bottom shard, shaped almost like a token or metro ticket, is an ominous mocking of normalcy.
Artist Information
-
Armelle Le Roux
Atelier Le Roux
3246 Ettie Street
Studio 11 Oakland, CA 94608
Specifications
Number of shards: 5 with some original lead and advertising envelope
Dimensions: 9¾” × 15¼”
Medium: painted and leaded
