Overview

• The installation, titled Hear Us, was conceived by poet Alex Vellis and curator Jacquiline Creswell from sessions asking people, “What would you ask God?”
• Bright, graffiti-style stick-on graphics carry questions such as “Are you there?” across pillars, walls and floors of the medieval church.
• Cathedral officials report reactions ranging from praise for the artistry to objections that it is sacrilegious, with some visitors comparing the look to an underground car park.
• The display officially opens on October 17, runs until January 18, and will be removed before Sarah Mullally’s enthronement as Archbishop of Canterbury.
• Leaders place the work in the cathedral’s long history of markings, citing masons’ signs and inscriptions dating to 1667, as the Dean describes the style as raw, disruptive and authentic.