Wendy Daws, an artist living and working in Medway and Kent, has worked with visually impaired people and the same is true of her latest project, "The Value of Touch". The culmination of this work was the exhibition and, ultimately, the dedication of the sculpture, created by Wendy and the group with whom she worked - writes Brian M.

Chris P and Norman W are members of the Medway Art Group and a couple of years ago we reported on their participation in an exhibition, in Rochester Cathedral. Following on from that exhibition, the group has, more recently, worked on a sculpture which represented a fresco, in the Cathedral’s East wing, by a Russian artist, Sergei Fyodorov.

The fresco, which is more than thirty feet (9 m) by twenty feet (6 m), is believed to be the first painted in an English cathedral since the twelfth century, painted directly onto a special mix of wet plaster, so as to become part of the wall. The sculpture, which is approximately 24 inches (60 cm) by 18 inches (45 cm) is designed to create a tactile plate which enables the visually impaired visitor to appreciate the sweep of the fresco, and the process from clay to bronze is very complicated.

The group’s leader, Wendy Daws, either completed herself or oversaw the transitions from clay to sand, sand to wax and wax to bronze, over a period of months. It was finally ready some weeks ago and installed in the cathedral, before (on November 6th, 2013) the finished tactile plate was dedicated, at a service of prayer attended by the mayor.

Chris and Norman, part of the team responsible for the plate, were amongst those gathered in the cathedral, together with Karen and Brian, RBBG members who are also involved with the Art Group. There was a sizeable turnout for the event, as the mayor, representatives of the cathedral and Karen Osborne, on behalf of KAB, paid tribute to Wendy’s sterling work with the group.