Romancing the Stone

To start off my blog, I thought I would recommend a worthy TV documentary it was aired earlier this year, but you may not have come across it --> Romancing the Stone: The Golden Ages of British Sculpture.  It gives a very interesting overview of British sculpture, and how the material can portray or hide a deeper meaning than originally witnessed. Within the first episode Masons of God there is an engaging section on Wells Cathedral, showing how the building used to look before the  reformation. The picture (left) below demonstrates the colour that used to adorn the cathedral, a factor considered either gaudy or impressive.

Wells Cathedral-- Pre reformation

Wells Cathedral today

 Presenter Alastair Sooke states the coloured form to be a representation of the entrance to paradise, and it would certainly have look un-earthy when compared to the comparative architecture of the time, definitely making it seem unique and heavenly to an onlooker. The bare stone that greets visitors today at Wells Cathedral, certainly hides a colourful past and to some may seem bland to the previous facade, but i see it still as an example of architectural genius, as in an era of minimalism such genuine beauty is hard to find.

Here is the link to the first episode of the BBC programme:-

Romancing the Stone