Meet the woman bringing art to Cork’s St Fin Barre’s Cathedral

Crawford graduate, Orla O’Byrne, is excited about Page Turners, the current exhibition at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, which features books by artists from Ireland, the UK, and parts of Europe.

In a newly created role at the cathedral, Orla is the curator. She previously spent a year as artist-in-residence at the cathedral.

Her work involves delivering an arts programme at St Fin Barre’s, curating exhibitions from the Cathedral’s own collection, and overseeing the conservation of the architect William Burges’s maquettes (plaster models) of everything from gargoyles to human figures.

Page Turners explores the book as an art object and a medium in itself. It is co-curated by St Fin Barre’s Cathedral and MTU Crawford College of Art and Design. The aim is to show the diversity of approaches used by artists who make books that, in this exhibition, comprise screen prints, origami, photography, original ink drawings and words.

The artists get to express their ideas both visually and in the printed word.

The exhibition came about as a result of a conversation between Orla and Dr Laura Little, who lectures in visual communications at MTU. She has an interest in artists’ books. Modest funding from both the cathedral and MTU Crawford made the exhibition possible.

Orla says that artists’ books are a growing artform.

“Artists are beginning to think they should make something that people can buy and take home at a low cost. You get an awful lot of bang for your buck and, as well as the object, the artists’ ideas are in the book.”

Two of those featured, Inniscarra-based writer Judy Kravis and artist Peter Morgan, have been producing Road Books since 1992. Judy is an experimental poet and diarist, while Peter’s approach is humorous, conceptual and provocative. On show at the exhibition is their attractive book, entitled Utopia. For this slim volume, they invited people to imagine life beyond their present state, to conjure a society in which they’d like to live.

“We live in a state of ranting and fear,” writes Judy. “We only have time for opposition. Utopia isn’t opposition, it’s radical dreaming.”

UK-based Tom Sowden’s focus is on artists’ books and publishing. This former associate dean at the School of Design at the Royal College of Art in London works in a variety of media, primarily the artist’s book format, but also photography, printmaking and video.

On show at St Fin Barre’s is his book, consisting of black and white photographs of charging stations between Long Ashton and Okehampton in Bristol.

Arts curators in churches are not the norm in this country.

“It is something that is happening in the UK a lot,” says Orla. “I went to Winchester Cathedral to meet the artist-in-residence there. Through that meeting, I made contact with a network called ‘arts and Christianity’.”

But Orla says art in sacred spaces doesn’t necessarily have to have a sacred element to it.

“In the Page Turners exhibition, it’s not holy art or specifically about Christianity. As long as it doesn’t alienate the people who come here to worship, we’re happy.

“The cathedral is not an art gallery. It’s about bringing work into a sacred space that will spark reflections and conversations. It’s a very open-minded church. There’s a lot of enthusiasm for what’s happening here.

“During the summer (as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival), ‘Helios’ a seven metre sun, hung in the nave, with a soundtrack playing. People loved it. Eventually, we ended up getting mats so they could lie down and look up at ‘Helios’. A lot of the congregation are interested in contemporary art.”

There was a time when some Corkonians wouldn’t venture into St Fin Barre’s Cathedral as it’s a Protestant church.

“I’ve noticed that a certain older generation of men and women living around here are coming in for the first time, finally deciding that it must be OK to come in. Barriers are breaking down. The Cathedral belongs to the city.”

Indeed, in the run up to Christmas, people from all sorts of backgrounds and traditions flock to St Fin Barre’s Cathedral for Handel’s Messiah.

“It’s the last thing on our arts programme. It’s a big draw because people think Christmas is very commercial. I think there’s a growing feeling that they want something a little more meaningful, something that will spark that feeling of what Christmas is about.”

This year, the two Handel’s Messiah concerts, which always sell out, will take place on December 12 and 13. Orla recommends booking in November. There are just 300 seats.

“Handel’s Messiah is a crucial source of fund-raising in the year for the choir. All the money we make from it (including sales of mulled wine) goes back into funding the choir.

“The choir is an incredible asset. A lot of us wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the choir. The music here is the art that keeps the cathedral going every day.”

Peter Stobart, the director of music at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, goes around to Church of Ireland schools, inviting pupils to join the choir.

Orla’s daughter Suan, who is nearly 18, has been a member of the choir since she was eight and plans to study music at third level.

Looking ahead, Orla expects that the exhibition of the maquettes will take place sometime in 2026.

“There is a small rolling exhibition of them in the ambulatory. There are 400 original Burges maquettes in all.

“Obviously, I think they deserve a whole room in the Crawford Art Gallery, or in their own building. We’ll see what happens. They’re a world class collection.”

• The Page Turners exhibition continues until October 31. See www.stfinbarres.ie.