JD Vance has hit out at the decision to allow Canterbury Cathedral’s interior to be used as an art installation that has seen it spraypainted in graffiti. The US vice president blasted the scheme which by the cathedral’s own admission, has “split opinion”. Vance, who recently converted to Catholicism said on X: “It is weird to me that these people don’t see the irony of honouring “marginalized communities” by making a beautiful historical building really ugly.”
Officials say that the exhibition is part of an installation where ordinary people “posed questions to God”. The scheme asks questions like “are you there?”, “why did you create hate when love is by far more powerful?” and “does everything have a soul?”. The “Hear Us” installation is the climax of poet Alex Vellis and curator Jacquiline Creswell’s collaboration with marginalised communities and a team of skilled artists to respond to the question: “What would you ask God?”.
Canterbury Cathedral hopes the display has provoked contemplation in visitors. (Image: Canterbury Cathedral)
The project asks questions like ‘are you there?’ (Image: Canterbury Cathedral)
The art has split opinion. (Image: Canterbury Cathedral)
It comes days after the Right Rev. Sarah Mullally was revealed as the first woman Archbishop of Canterbury-designate in the more than 1,400-year-old building.
“I think it’s sacrilegious,” one Cathedral visitor said, according to officials.
Another wondered whether the graffiti images made parts of the historic site “look like an underground car park in Peckham”.
David Monteith, Dean of Canterbury, said: “There is a rawness which is magnified by the graffiti style which is disruptive.”
He added: “There is also an authenticity in what is said because it is unfiltered and not tidied up or sanitised.
“Above all, this graffiti makes me wonder why I am not always able to be as candid, not least in my prayers.
“This exhibition intentionally builds bridges between cultures, styles and genres and in particular allows us to receive the gifts of younger people who have much to say and from whom we need to hear much.”
Curator Jacquiline Creswell said: “Within a theological context, posing a question to God is viewed as a form of prayer, meditation, or contemplation, in return receiving guidance and solace from a source believed to be all-knowing and compassionate.
“By reaching out to the Divine with personal inquiries, individuals may find comfort, clarity, and direction amidst life’s uncertainties.”
