So, back in one of my first postings to this blog, I talked about a place that I used to visit as a kid that fascinated me, this place was the Whitfield Tabernacle Site in Kingswood, Bristol.
The site is home to 3 buildings. The grade 1 listed tabernacle which, built in 1741, is a symbol of the entire story of non-conformism from when George Whitfield, an evangelical Anglican minister, paired up with John Wesley and established a band of Methodists and kick started a whole collection of religious movements commonly referred to as “The Great Awakening”. There’s the Chapel House also located on the site and finally Master’s Church which was built much later in 1851, 90 years after the original site was established.
The church now stands empty and has done my entire life which is a huge shame when you considered that George Whitfield is extremely well known and had a huge impact on religion across the UK, other countries and especially America.
This building always fascinated me and it was actually the birth place of my photography as this was the building in which I took my first photo which grabbed the attention of someone who actually wanted to purchase the photo.
I’ve seen this church falling apart, the actual grade 1 listed tabernacle, the most important building not just on the site, but in the UK has since been reduced to four walls and nothing more, a real shame.
The church building is a spectacular example of Victorian religious architecture and I took the opportunity along-side model / dancer Amy Harper to shoot in this magnificent building back in September 2012.
Enjoy the shoot.