Patients, staff and visitors to the Bristol Eye Hospital in Upper Maudlin Street are praising the FBEH-funded clean-up of the famous brick murals that are set into the wall to the left of the main entrance.
They were installed when the eye hospital was renovated in 1986. At that time they were the largest non-reinforced brick reliefs ever carved and were acclaimed as one of the finest public works of art in the country.
Depicting ‘The Creation’, they were sculpted by Walter Ritchie, one of the last apprentices to work with the famous and controversial sculptor and designer Eric Gill, noted also for designing the Gill Sans typeface, used on many computer programmes over the years.
Ritchie, who died in 1997, preferred to make public sculptures, rather than private artworks, but sadly many of his other carvings in brick have now been lost, as the buildings they were on have been demolished.
Bristol-based professional sculptor Alistair Park has commented on the beauty and inspiration of these relief carvings in a blog post. He adds that the use of carving techniques directly into what are basically house bricks is both unusual and interesting. Another web comment praises Ritchie’s wonderful ability to capture detail such as the soaring movement of the birds that are featured.
The refurbishment of the murals was organised and funded by the Friends of Bristol Eye Hospital, a charity set up over forty years ago to support many aspects of the hospital’s work.
Dinah Harrison, a past Chairman and Secretary of the charity, who has helped with the project, said it was a shame that such an acclaimed and inspirational piece of public art has been deteriorating for so long.
“Years of grime and smoke resulting from the pollution of times past, had made the murals difficult to see, which was such a shame, as they are a wonderful piece of art.
“Obviously, it is not something that the NHS was able to help with, but we felt that having a more pleasant exterior and entrance to the hospital was beneficial to patients and staff alike.
“Indeed, we’ve been gratified by the extremely favourable comments and thanks from both staff, patients and even people who are just passing, often on their way to the bus station or other hospitals in central Bristol”, said Dinah.
The murals, which depict the story of the creation are accompanied by text that reads:
“Disaster and crisis were always advertised, settlement and tranquillity seldom. Only in retrospect could we see things in their relations. When we passed from the years to the centuries, and from the centuries to the whole expanse of man’s story – out of chaos into life, from animal life to humanity, and on into civilisation; when we saw man in his cosmic setting, the latest child of a universe wedded to eternity, his thought transcending matter and seeking deity – there was no room for ignoble despair: rather would our minds be filled with wonder and our hearts with thankfulness”.
