Pick of the Week: Sanctum

02/11/2015
Jess Connett

Discover what’s on the Rife Guide this week, including a unique art exhibit happening 24 hours a day.

When was the last time you were in a church? A wedding or a funeral? A regular Sunday service, or a brief visit to a grand Cathedral? Banish your preconceptions of the church as a place for silent worship, because a new art installation in a ruined church in Bristol city centre is going to be making a lot of noise for the next few weeks.

Sanctum is a hugely ambitious free public art installation, set up as part of Bristol’s Green Capital status. The location is Temple Church, not far from Castle Park, which was built in the 1300s and is rumoured to have ties to King Arthur. It was heavily bombed in WWII and has remained a ruin ever since. Now, it’s getting a fresh lease of life, thanks to event producers, Situations. A whole new temporary structure, made from recycled materials, has been constructed inside the ruined old walls to house the performances.

This event is happening for a total of 24 days, and performances are happening 24 hours a day. That’s 552 consecutive hours of free public art – music, poetry, storytelling and all sorts of other interesting and unusual performances. Chicago-born artist Theaster Gates will be performing at undisclosed times throughout this week, so if you’re feeling lucky you can try to catch him.

This project is a celebration of Bristol’s history, and its amazing community of artists who live and work here. The show will end on November 21st, which will mark 75 years since the church was destroyed in a WWII bombing raid. The temporary structure will be taken down and the church will close again to the public, with just a few whispered memories to remind us of this extraordinary event.

Sanctum is happening 24 hours a day, every day until November 21st. It’s at Temple Church, about 10 minutes walk from Temple Meads. It’s completely free to attend this event at any time of the day, but capacity is limited and it can get really busy, so pick your times wisely. Full details can be found here, on the Rife Guide.

Have you been to Sanctum already, or are you planning to go? Show us what a good time you had and tell us what else you’re getting up to this week on Twitter, Facebook or on Instagram.

More events this week:

Learn Stage Combat with this one-off masterclass at Tobacco Factory

Make art at Spike Island with artist Jo Lathwood

Celebrate Diwali with the Deaf Youth Club