Behold the blessed light; behold the everlasting goodness

Virtual paschal candle design 2020 This is only the second year since 1986 that I haven’t been able to design and print a Paschal candle design. In 2005 I was ill; this time the print workshop was closed and there are no church services. This year’s candle would have been letterpress set and printed, and something like this: the first two lines from Alessandro Striggio’s motet Ecce Beatam Lucem of 1561, and the required phrases Alpha, Omega, & 2020. The required cross would have been made solely by the incense ‘pins’. The arrangement of the words follows the courses of bells 1, 4, and 6 during the ringing of Grandsire Minor

Exsultet

‘There are a number of contemporary artists, Maggi Hambling among them, for whom Holy Week and particularly Good Friday is a period for a specific creative endeavour. However agnostic or otherwise those artists might be, there is a sense in which this annual Christian narrative – of corruption, betrayal and pain – is played out through visual images, sometimes literal depictions of the crucifixion, often melancholic allegories of existential import. Phil Baines, […] might be counted among these practitioners but his annual exercise is one of exultation. Falling as it often does between terms, each year in Holy Week Baines designs and fabricates a Paschal candle which is the focus of the beginning of the Easter liturgy, symbolising light coming out of the darkness. In most churches these are bought off-the-shelf from an ecclesiastical supplier, but former colleagues of Baines from his pre-art school days at Ushaw College (a training seminary for Catholic priests), have been the fortunate recipients of his designs over the last 32 years. At St Augustine’s, Hammersmith, all 32 of Baines’ Paschal candles were brought back to life […]. They stood within a small side chapel in the newly reordered church with clean white walls, marble floors and a simple marble altar. The combined effect of such typographic dexterity was almost dizzying, with words and symbols jumping out in reds and golds and, in later designs, a dark blue. As Baines explains in the exhibition booklet, ‘the rules for a Paschal candle are few: it should have a cross, it should say A (alpha) and Ω (omega), it should state the year.’ Early designs utilise Latin text from the Exsultet (which is said or sung during the Easter Vigil when the candle is lit) with larger lettering providing dynamic intersecting lines and overlayering in cross formations. By the late 1990s the lettering is predominantly sans serif, with mutations of nesting letters and some typically clever uses of letters that act in dual roles. For example, a ‘t’ of ‘Et’ becomes a cross dividing the pictorial plane into quarters. At the millennium Baines designed his own font, Vere Dignum, specifically for the purpose of the candles and it’s deployed with beautiful, lavish effect, and in red only, in a further six silkscreen designs. Scrolling serifs and thin tall letters reminiscent of ironwork and calligraphic scripts are wonderfully redolent of ecclesiastical designs of the past that Baines is able to draw on. But such is Baines’ nimble ability to change between styles (and perhaps his impish curiosity) that in 2008 he brings back letterpress work and large chunky Gill Sans letters spelling out (shouting out in fact!) ‘ALLEUIA! REJOICE!’ […] Finally, in the last couple of years, the designs reflect a new interest for Baines in bell ringing, and the complex patterns used in method ringing. Replacing numbers with letters from the word GLORIA, the face of the candle is riddled with different permutations, and the eye just about catches the pattern beginning to take shape as the letters spiral down the cylinder form. There is enough in each one of Baines’ designs to give interest and beauty throughout the year, but this mini retrospective of the 32 designs revealed the joy and inventiveness with which this self-imposed annual task is undertaken, a creative discipline fit for its purpose.’ Review by Laura Moffat, Forum (Journal of Letter Exchange) 95

Carmody Groarke & Phil Baines: Three contemporary memorials in London

The exhibition documents the collaboration between architect and lettering designer in the design of three permanent memorials for London. Each of the completed memorials are testaments to the close conversations between the disciplines of these two art-practices – a close synthesis of architecture and lettering design. The exhibition shows the process and inspirations behind both architectural and lettering designs and how both practices worked to forge these ideas into a cohesive, sculptural whole in each unique memorial. The work describes the innate connection (and necessary tension) in a memorial between emotional and pragmatic, figurative and abstract, historic and contemporary, ephemeral and eternal, form and substance, lettering and materials that are required for such a unique public commission. This process illustrates not only the integration of the design of the memorials into their physical, historical, cultural and social context, but the consideration of the necessary integration of the experience of the visitor in the presence of this architecture. The collaborative process reinforces the intention of bringing meaning to the memorial through its making and illustrates an approach where the place, material and message are of equal measure. This approach reminds us of the responsibility of a memorial, as a permanent reminder for society to ‘stop one forgetting’ the unique circumstances that shattered the order of so many people’s lives

The dark side of political marketing

Purpose This article discusses exploratory research into the perceptions of British Muslims towards Islamist ideological messaging to contribute to the general debate on ‘radicalisation'. The article discusses the findings of discussion groups in the light of research previously undertaken in the propaganda/psychology fields, from the perspective of Reversal Theory. Methodology/approach Four focus groups were undertaken with a mixture of Bangladeshi and Pakistani British Muslims who were shown a selection of Islamist propaganda media clips, garnered from the internet. The research is intended to provide exploratory indications of how British Muslims receive Islamist communication messages in order to provoke further research in this critical field. Findings We propose that Islamist communications focus on eliciting change in emotional states, specifically inducing the paratelic-excitement mode, by focusing around a meta-narrative of Muslims as a unitary grouping self- defined as victim to Western aggression. Early indicators are that some genres of Islamist propaganda may be more effective than others in generating these emotional change states (e.g. cartoons) and some groupings appear to be more susceptible than others. We conclude that our British Muslim respondents were unsympathetic to the Islamist ideological messaging contained in our sample of propaganda clips. Research limitations/implications The research highlights the difficulties in undertaking research in such a sensitive field. We propose a series of four testable propositions to guide future research looking specifically at whether those subjects who are more likely to be excited by Islamist communication include those with weakly held identities, younger males, those feeling contempt for Western culture, and the use of specific media genre formats. Originality/value of paper The article provides an insight into how British Muslims might respond to Islamist communications, indicating that whilst most are not susceptible to inducement of paratelic-excitement, others are likely to be, dependent on which genre of clip is used, the messages contained therein, and who that clip is targeted at

Ecological interactions between Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) and baleen whales in the South Sandwich Islands region – Exploring predator-prey biomass ratios

Following the cessation of whaling, the southwest Atlantic humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) population is thought to be close to pre-exploitation size, reversing 20th century changes in abundance. Using a model-based approach applied to concurrently collected data on baleen whale abundance and Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) biomass in the South Sandwich Islands (SSI) region, we explore ecological interactions between these taxa. Krill biomass and baleen whale density were highest to the north and northeast of the SSI, where the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is deflected around the island chain. Humpback whale density was elevated at locations of krill biomass density >150 gm-2. Krill consumption by baleen whales was estimated at 19–29% of the available krill standing stock. We used historic whaling data to confirm the plausibility of these consumption rates and found evidence of rapid weight gain in humpback whales, such that blubber depleted during the breeding season could be restored in a much shorter period than previously assumed. Little is known about krill replenishment rates in the flow of the ACC, or about niche separation between recovering baleen whale populations; both factors may affect species carrying capacities and further monitoring will be required to inform the management of human activities in the region

Identity and exhibition design: Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft

In 2007 the Trustees began serious discussion about the future of the museum and a bold capital project was developed. The £2.3m redevelopment was funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, as well as many generous donations by charitable trusts, foundations and individuals. The project involved a major refurbishment by Adam Richards Architects and includes a dedicated learning space, a new shop and cafe, purpose built collection store, a research room and new displays. The redefined focus of the museum is reflected in the updated name; ‘Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft’, with a new identity, exhibition design, and associated graphics designed by Phil Baines. The graphic design draws inspiration from Arts & Crafts sensibilities in general, and the work of the Guild of St Dominic & St Joseph in particular. A special version of Gill Sans was drawn for the project by Phil Baines & Natalie Braune with kind permission of Monotype. Sir Nicholas Serota, Director of Tate, formally opened Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft on 20 September 2013 and the museum was a finalist in the 2014 Artfund Museum of the Year Award