Dallas, Texas – The wonderful thing about fundamentally good art, is it tends to multiply upon itself. Songs inspire paintings inspire films inspire writing inspire sculptures. What feels like the end of a project to one artist is a seed of inspiration – just the beginning – to another.
When the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in Dallas, Texas, officially welcomed a Heritage Edition of The Saint John’s Bible in 2022, that’s exactly what happened. The parishioners were lit ablaze with the desire to multiply upon this artwork that inspired Visio Divina exercises, enthusiastic conversations, and even a DIY version of the Bible created by the congregation’s children.
“We were incorporating the Heritage Edition into the Church’s life and using it as a devotional tool on a regular basis,” said The Reverend Casey Shobe of Transfiguration. “So, we were encountering the images regularly and being inspired by them. We began to wonder about having a piece of art that might be connected to or inspired by the illuminations.”
Coincidentally, the Church had been discussing acquiring or creating a banner around the same time. Very quickly, the Church decided that a great way to accomplish both goals at once was by incorporating illuminations from The Saint John’s Bible into processional banners.
“The idea of a new art commission inspired by The Saint John’s Bible collided with this desire for a processional banner or two. That’s when it really started to gel,” said Rev. Shobe. “So, I started to brainstorm with my clergy colleagues and some of the other folks on our staff team, and it really started to spark, people really liked the idea.”
Four members of the congregation took the idea to heart and agreed to sponsor its creation. Thus, the project came to life because of the generosity of parishioners Robert and Frances Martin, and Bruce and Elaine Culver.
Reimagining Illuminations with Watts & Co.
A year before having this idea, Transfiguration had acquired a cope (a liturgical cloak) from Watts & Co., a renowned ecclesiastical garment, textiles, and furnishings provider based in London, England. “We knew their particular skill and brilliance in creating textile vestments,” said Rev. Shobe. “So, we reached out to Watts and asked if this was an idea that was interesting to them.”
It was. Thus, the partnership began and the ideation phase commenced. Transfiguration and Watts started a series of conversations to create a vision for these two banners. The Church wanted one banner to encapsulate its mission to seek and serve Christ in all persons, and the other to be inspired directly by one of the illuminations from The Saint John’s Bible.
But, which illumination to choose? One illumination that stood out immediately was “To The Ends of the Earth”.
“We wanted the second banner to deepen the mission of the first banner, to align with that core value, and to help stir the spiritual imagination,” said Rev. Shobe. “‘To The Ends of the Earth’ really captures this idea of the cosmos and the divine design of the universe – that the earth is not the only thing that God is sovereign over, but that God is the God of everything. It stirred a lot of feelings for us.”
After the initial series of conversations took place in Dallas, the Watts team headed back across the pond to begin phase two of the process: an elaborate exercise to start translating abstract ideas onto a page.
“Through regular consultations, our in-house artist developed two visions for the banners, drawing on the infiniteness of space in one, and the strength of community in the other — both tied inextricably to the Church of the Transfiguration,” said a representative from Watts.
“We were drawn to the dynamic qualities of Jackson’s work, bold in its brushwork and use of color — vibrant backgrounds contrasting strong geometric designs,” the Watts representative continued. “Recreating this spirit with hand embroidery would require using color and techniques to translate these beautiful illuminations into a physical, tangible object of outstanding beauty. Our design process was completed by hand, with our in-house artist opting for watercolour and pencil over our digital software to best reflect the essence of Jackson’s style.”
A couple of months later, the team presented their initial concepts to Transfiguration.
“It was at that point that we realized, ‘This is it. You’ve nailed it,’” said Rev. Shobe. “The folks at Watts were absolutely wonderful to work with; they were brilliant and skilled. The deeply intentional work that they did researching and reflecting was wonderful because that is so connected to how The Saint John’s Bible and its illuminations came about too. It was a long careful process of discernment. They understand the sacred nature of this, which made them such a joyful partner for us.”
Imagining God at Home
Just as The Saint John’s Bible features motifs from Wales and Minnesota, the homes of the project, it was important to the people of Transfiguration that the new banners reflect their home, as well.
“The second banner we returned to Earth, rooting our design in Texas amongst the congregation of the Church of the Transfiguration,” said a representative from Watts. “We were inspired by the composition of Fra Angelico’s ‘The Last Judgement’: Jesus, glowing in gold and silver, is central, while various figures circle him, reaching out, themselves glowing with golden light.”
Some motifs are quite literal – a cowboy hat and boots, a monarch butterfly, a mockingbird perched on a tree, and a longhorn are all nods to the region. Others are more discreet and personal, such as the labyrinth motif representing the sacred geometry that has been inlaid in Transfiguration’s floor since the mid-1990s, two live oak trees, and a field of bluebonnets.
The banners arrived on Thanksgiving weekend 2024. After the Church had processional polls made for them, the banners officially debuted to the congregation on Christmas Eve. “It was perfect,” said Rev. Shobe. “It fits so well because, together, the banners represent the deeper, greater theology of Christmas, the incarnation of the one who made the cosmos, who established and set the pillars of creation. Represented in the one banner is also the one who comes near and enters into the world. He is human among us and is as close to us as the person in front of us.”
“It was a phenomenal, challenging, and intensely gratifying experience to work on these banners from start to finish — to see the spirit of TheSaint John’s Bible Heritage Edition recreated on a grand scale in our workroom,” said the team at Watts. “We were greatly inspired by the project and the opportunity to delve into Jackson’s work, utilizing our expertise and the technical skills of our artisans to create two beautiful banners.”
The Saint John’s Bible: Ignite the Spiritual Imagination
To read more stories similar to this one, visit the Heritage Program blog and subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter, Sharing the Word.