“listen…incline the ear of your heart”.
- St Benedict
In the Presence of Angels presents work by one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most celebrated and respected photographers Anne Noble, known for her photographic essays or narratives that engage with site and subject. Her photographs are recognized for their splendour, intricacy and conceptual rigour which inquire into our understanding of the natural and human world.
During her travels in London, she accidentally came across a community of nuns living in the Tyburn Convent Monastery who continue to follow contemplative routines of the ancient monastic rule of St Benedict. Situated in the heart of London, the echoed stillness of the tranquil monastery contrasts the bustling setting of the London underground. As a welcomed guest, Noble stayed for several weeks where she participated with the nuns’ daily routines of prayer, work and diet. It was during this time that she studied their silent ritual and documented it through photographs.
Press
→ Camera inside a cocoon, New Zealand Herald, 1992
→ Portrayal of prayer, Eastern Courier, 29-01-1992
→ Silent Film, Illusions, Spr 1991
Ephemera
→ Anne Noble: In the Presence of Angels: Photographs of the Contemplative Life, 1992, exhibition card
→ Anne Noble: In the Presence of Angels: Photographs of the Contemplative Life, 1992, poster
Download
→ Anne Noble: In the Presence of Angels: Photographs of the Contemplative Life, 1992, publication