Re-Making Maps of the Mind: Medieval & Modern Journeys

St Thomas Way

‘Re-Making Maps of the Mind: Medieval & Modern Journeys’

This exhibition accompanies the launch of the new heritage trail on the Welsh-English borders, St Thomas Way. Artist Michelle Rumney has been visiting places along the St Thomas Way and exploring medieval beliefs since last September. She’s been working alongside Chloe MacKenzie, research fellow in Medieval English at the University of Southampton. They’ve been looking at the ways people made sense of the world around them – from contemplating the vast ‘known’ world of the Hereford Mappa Mundi to the ‘simple’ act of taking a walk.

Miracles

St Thomas Way winds from Swansea to Hereford, loosely following the pilgrimage route taken in 1290 by ‘The Hanged Man’, William Cragh. Hung for his many crimes, he miraculously came back to life later that afternoon. He said he’d seen a vision of Thomas Cantalupe, the late Bishop of Hereford. There were reports of over 200 miracles at the time. The Pope later canonised him and Thomas became Hereford’s first Saint.

William walked barefoot all the way to Hereford Cathedral to give thanks to Thomas for saving his life – and his soul. Around his neck, he wore the noose he’d been hung with.

Measuring

This story is inspiring on so many levels. Chloe has been walking in places that still hold echoes of those times over 700 years later, testing the new circular routes at each of the 13 points along the trail. Meanwhile, Michelle has been exploring the strange world of the Mappa Mundi and at the medieval practice of ‘Measuring to the Saint’.  While he was being Measured to the Saint, William started coming back to life.

In the 13th century, it was the custom to measure a person who needed spiritual or physical help from head to toe using a piece of string or thread. Send this length of string to a cathedral or abbey, and the monks would make a candle from it, then pray to the saint for the person’s eternal soul. Michelle loved this concept that a humble piece of string could perhaps still connect us spiritually. She has used the practice in her work, measuring over 260 people ‘to the saint’. Using these lengths of string to create a new ’map’, she invites us to explore and reflect upon these new landscapes.

Maps

Dr Catherine Clarke, Professor of Medieval English at the University of Southampton, originally commissioned the exhibition. Catherine first came across Michelle’s work with maps and labyrinths at the exhibition at Poole Lighthouse: “Are we There Yet? Mapping the Labyrinth”.

The University of Southampton’s Public Engagement with Research unit (PERu) funded this exhibition “Re-Making Maps of the Mind: Medieval & Modern Journeys”.

Journeys

After the exhibition in Hereford Cathedral, the artworks set out on the trail themselves, on a pilgrimage of their own along St Thomas Way. There are 13 locations along the trail and Michelle is continuing to install the exhibition in as many of them as possible – these are some of the locations:

2018

• Hereford Cathedral – Jul-Sep
• Abergavenny – St Mary’s Priory – Sep-Oct
• Swansea – Trinity Chapel in St Mary’s Church – Oct-Nov
• Glamorgan Heritage Parish – St Illtud’s Llantwit Major – Nov-Jan

2019

• Newport Cathedral – Apr-Jun
• Glamorgan Heritage Parish – Ewenny Priory – Jun-Sep
• Glamorgan Heritage Parish – St Illtud’s Llantwit Major – Holding Onto Hope Art Festival – Oct
• ‘Measuring to the Saint’ workshop day in Southampton – part of Hands on Humanities/Human Worlds Festival

2020

• Glamorgan Heritage Parish – St Illtud’s Llantwit Major
• St Fagans – Museum of Welsh Life  TBC
• Hereford Cathedral – 700th Celebrations for St Thomas Cantilupe – Jul-Sep
• Caerphilly Castle  TBC

To be kept in touch with future exhibitions, join Michelle’s mailing list here:michellerumney.com