Carrie Fertig spreads her flameworked wings at the Chichester Cathedral

An individual glass feather from Carie Fertig's upcoming wingspan to open in October in a British cathedral.

The Chichester Cathedral in the Southern English town of Chichester is over 900 years old. Within its walls works of art that date back to the 12th century sit alongside pieces commissioned during the late 20th century. At the beginning of October, the millennial cathedral welcomes its latest piece of modern art courtesy of American-born, Edinburgh-based artist Carrie Fertig. The piece, entitled “Homing” and comprised of a pair of outstretched dove wings with a 25 foot wingspan, will hang suspended above the cathedral’s northern transept. The wings, made from 300 individual glass feathers measuring 13 inches wide and 41 inches in length, will be unveiled at a private ceremony on October 8th.

Fertig began the feather making process with a tube of borosilicate glass which she (along with Edinburgh College of Art students when working with larger pieces of glass) then flameworked into a unique feather. Once the feather was in a shape she was happy with, one side of the feather was sandblasted, making them appear white to both catch and transmit light.

Fertig, herself an ECA graduate, began work on the wings as an Artist-in-Residence at the cathedral earlier this year. From her specially installed workshop in the north transept she displayed her flameworking skills and gave informational sessions. From here she was able to begin work on the feathers and talk with visitors about the project. This participation from visitors is very important to Fertig. At the project’s unveiling in October the audience is,” invited to speak, whisper, or sing any concept of the word spirit that they want to express in an opening ceremony in a dark Cathedral that is simultaneously slowly lit with candles.” For those unable to attend the opening ceremony, all visitors are, “encouraged to quietly utter their concept of the word spirit in this space during the run of the exhibition and to use the wings as both a gatherer and transmitter of spirit.”

Feathers for Carrier Fertig's installation Homing

“Homing,” with its 25-foot wingspan, is scaled to represent the wingspan a human body would need in order to fly. However the title also has another meaning for people who see the church as a place of refuge, a sort of second home that people go to whenever they need something. “People visit Chichester Cathedral for lots of reasons including: attending services, looking at the architecture, prayer, listening to concerts, and to seek solace,” Fertig says. “This sculpture aims to positively impact the experience of being in the Cathedral for all visitors no matter what the reason for their visit. “

An estimated 103,000 people will pass through Chichester Cathedral while the installation is in place, and Fertig hopes that the installation manages to, “transform the North Transept into a place of wonder, peace, contemplation and ascendancy.” For their part, cathedral representatives sound equally excited to have such a large installation as part of the visitor experience. According to Visitor Services Officer Ruth Poyner, “We are delighted to be exhibiting this extraordinary sculpture. The sight of these wings suspended from the cathedral ceiling … promises to be quite extraordinary.”

The wings will be on display through January 17th.

You can watch a video description of the project by Fertig herself in a fundraising pitch below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-NSDTNncXE&w=420&h=345

-Jason Gutierrez