Beloved member of our Shrewsbury parish Aidan Hart has been given the great honour of being asked by HM King Charles III to design three large embroidered screens to surround him during his sacred anointing at the coronation next Saturday.

The anointing has been historically viewed as the most sacred moment of the service – and the screen affords sanctity to this special moment between The King and God.

The main screen design is a union of a tree that symbolizes the Commonwealth nations, the dove that represents the consecrating Holy Spirit, the Trinitarian ‘star’ above, and the heavenly angels rejoicing. The King’s cypher is at the base. The two sides feature a simple cross in maroon gold, blue and red.

Aidan said that the inspiration, for the design, of the Chapel Royal stained-glass window was personally requested by his majesty the king. Each and every element of the design has been specifically chosen to symbolise aspects of this historic coronation.

As renowned icon painter and liturgical artist for over thirty-five years, Aidan has works in over thirty countries of the world. His passion is to create art and church interiors that reflect something of the beauty of life in Christ, and help people experience that union of heaven and earth that is the ultimate purpose of liturgical art. Works that draw people closer to Christ.

He uses traditional methods and materials, making icons, frescoes, mosaics and carvings in stone and wood. For inspiration, Aidan draws in particular on the Byzantine, Romanesque and Russian liturgical traditions.

He has had two books published on the techniques and the theology of icons. He founded and teaches a three- year part-time course in icon painting for The Prince’s Foundation School of Traditional Arts. www.aidanharticons.com

A Bowe