Bishop of Dudley looks angelic as heavenly sculpture unveiled at church
The Bishop of Dudley was looking extremely angelic as a heavenly sculpture was unveiled outside a church in the Black Country.
The Rt Rev Graham Usher looked as though he had sprouted a set of wings as he led a service at St Peter's Church in Cradley.
But these wings are a work of art which was shown to the public for the first time.
The angel wings sculpture is the creation of Black Country artist Luke Perry who was commissioned by the church to make the impressive steel sculpture. It stands two and a half feet high and features two seats.
He has previously made other statues which stand in the Black Country and was keen to help out a church which has deep connections to his family.
Mr Perry, aged 32, already has a plot in the cemetery where four generations of his family are buried. The name of his great great great grandfather also adorns a nearby cenotaph.
He said: "It was a really nice service. People reacted to the sculpture which is exactly what I wanted. It has big wow factor, people immediately wanted to use it as a photopiece and it really lends itself to that."
The sculpture took around six weeks to make and has been galvanised which should protect it from weathering for the next 80 years. Mr Perry, from Cradley Heath, said it was extra special to make his mark on the community.
He said: "You travel the world and see these beautiful things which become part of the fabric of the world. To be able to create something which will last for centuries is a privilege."
The vicar of St Peter's Church, Reverend Katryn Leclézio said: "We wanted to celebrate local history in metal work with something made of metal and made by a local artist as our first public art work.
"Luke Perry is a very talented artist and we were thrilled that he accepted the commission. We can see and hear his forge from the churchyard and so he works a very locally to the church.
"His interest in local history was helpful in our developing the concept of a piece of public art that was in keeping with the Christian tradition and yet which touched contemporary feeling for the spiritual in life.
"We hope too that it will be an art work which attracts local weddings to the church."
