An unusual sculpture will soon be on display in Grimsby Minster. Our Big Picture is presenting the third installment of the Art In The Minster exhibition with its unique and meaningful Chandelier of Lost Earrings.
Created by artists Sharon Campbell and Lauren Sagar, the chandelier will be open for viewing between January 18th and February 1st. It is made of over 2,000 single earrings and stands at 2.5 metres tall, creating an impressive site.
Each of the earrings was donated to the project by people who had lost the other half of the pair, meaning that there is a huge mix of designs on show. Those who donated their incomplete pairs of earrings also provided the artists with letters telling the story of the earrings.
These letters, which have become an important part of the sculpture’s legacy, convey the emotional importance of each individual earring included in the piece, giving it a very human history.
Originally, the chandelier was created to be displayed at St Mary’s Hospital in Manchester, but it’s brief stint at the Grimsby Minster should allow more people to enjoy the unique work of art. It has already been viewed by thousands of people, with the idea of losing one half of something being a theme that many can connect with.
Ms Sagar told the Grimsby Telegraph: “The individuality of these personal objects has been transcended, and the audience are captured by the depth and sheer beauty of the piece. Once drawn in, the details start to emerge and they become lost in their own imagined stories of each gifted object; stories of human emotion, memory, loss, beauty and love.”
According to Ms Campbell, the sculpture ended up representing each of the individual stories of loss being woven together, helping to create a community of people who are linked through the chandelier. It was one of her lost earrings that initially inspired the piece as she thought it deserved a better home than her dressing table.
The chandelier is just the latest piece that has been brought to Grimsby Minster to be displayed thanks to Our Big Picture and support from the Arts Council England and 20-21 Visual Arts Centre.
Paula Denton, managing director of Our Big Picture, said: “The Art In The Minster project has been immensely popular with tremendous interest and support from the public.
“We are thrilled that The Chandelier Of Lost Earrings is coming to Grimsby and this exhibition will be a stunning addition to the Lady Chapel within the Minster.”
As well as the chandelier being exhibited at the Minster, Ms Sagar will be visiting on January 18th to talk about the piece and her new project, Call for Cloth.