Dear readerDear brothers and sisters

Like many churches in Europe, the Reformed Church of Switzerland has been experiencing a significant decrease in church membership over the past years. This has recently led some church leaders to hop over the channel and find inspiration in London churches. In this delegation of church leaders were the President of the Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches, Gottfried Locher and President of the Cantonal Church of Zurich, Michel Müller. They visited some of the vibrant Anglican churches to find inspiration and ideas. In a TV interview, Gottfried Locher said: “English people are good in activating all senses. Worship means also to enjoy each other’s company, to sing and pray together and even share a meal after the church service. It means to align one’s life with the church community.” (SRF Tagesschau, 10 January 2016).

As we have probably all experienced in our lives, change more often than not happens out of necessity. Financial pressure forces many churches to rethink their concept of being church. This was also the situation I was confronted with when I started my ministry at the Swiss Church in London. The Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches (FSPC) had just decided to stop the funding of its London church, and we are since facing the common task of rethinking our raison d’ être. It is an exciting and challenging time to find a middle way between cherishing our reformed traditions whilst at the same time opening up for new ways of being church. This can be frightening,

but I am sure that most of you will agree that the changes we were dreading at the beginning turned out to be life enhancing and eye opening. Our community is growing, not only in terms of numbers, but especially in terms of strength. The Swiss Church is an important part of people’s lives - and not only on a Sunday! We are quickly adopting what Gottfried Locher describes as the English way of being church. Most people come here to enjoy each other’s company, Swiss people as well as people from the fashion world, from the homeless community, artists, musicians and dancers.

The Reformed Church in Switzerland has been supporting the Swiss community in London for many decades and we remain grateful for this. Although the financial support will no longer be coordinated by the FSPC we can still count on our sister churches. This means a lot to us. I

want to thank particularly the Cantonal Church of St.Gallen and the Cantonal Church of Lucerne for their financial support towards our homeless outreach programme and the creation of a new webpage, as well as the parish churches in Switzerland who support us on regular basis, namely Sursee, Arth-Goldau, Fehraltdorf, Halden and Utzenstorf, and many others who have been generous. We hope that we can inspire our sister churches in Switzerland, just as they

Swiss Church in LondonEglise Suisse de LondresSchweizerkirche in LondonChiesa Svizzera a LondraBaselgia Svizra a LondraSpring 2016

In this edition

News from the Consistoire - - - - - - - 2News from the Community - - - - - - - 3Focus - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4-5People from our Community - - - - - - 6Announcements - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 6Events @ The Swiss Church - - - - - - 7

Editorial

Swiss Church News

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Many churches face an unknown future

Editorial

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inspire us to do the work we do. We are looking forward to deepening these relationships over the coming years.

In March we will see the opening of the winning project of the yearly Swiss Church Goldsmiths competition, a programme to support young curators and artists that brings into dialogue contemporary art and the sacred space. On the focus page you will learn more about our collaboration with the Goldsmiths Universuty of London.

I am also happy to announce that we will have an intern at the Swiss Church from 15 March until 15 June. Here, she is introducing herself:

“Hi, I am Lili! I am a 20 year old book, music and dog loving person from a tiny village in Switzerland. I come from a family of Church Ministers - so I

figured what better way to spend my gap year than to work at the Swiss Church! For the past couple of months I have been working in a retirement home and I also was a German teacher for two nuns from Tanzania. I am already very excited to come to London. See you soon!”

We are very much looking forward to welcoming Lilian as part of our team and community!

I wish you all a very happy new year!

Blessings,

ImprintPublisherThe Swiss Church in London79 Endell StreetLondon WC2H 9DYA company limited by Guarantee registered in England & Wales, no 4454591. A registered Charity no 1094992.

Editors Carla Maurer & Philip Maillardet

ContactPhone 020 7836 1418info@swisschurchlondon.org.uk

Websitewww.swisschurchlondon.org.ukYou can download the latest Swiss Church News on our website.

Deadline for the nextSwiss Church News 20 April 2016

News from the Consistoire

Andrea Vedolin, Company SecretaryI was born and raised in Zurich and have lived in many places in Switzerland, including St. Gallen, Basel and Lugano where I finished my PhD in Economics in 2010. I moved to London in 2010 and since then I am an assistant professor at the London School of Economics where I teach Master students and mainly do research on a wide array of topics in economics. In my free time, I enjoy traveling, sports and taking advantage of the vast cultural possibilities that London has to offer. I strongly support the Swiss Church’s cause to help the deprived and build a community.

David Hume, Vice-PresidentMy experience over the last 20 years leading successful projects for several banks in the City of London and previously as a Squadron Leader in the Royal Air Force are skills I look forward to bringing to the Consistoire. My aim is to assist the Consistoire build a strong governance team and develop robust fundraising strategies. I worked for a short period with the ‘old’ Swiss Bank Corporation in Zurich, Geneva and Basel and our son was living and working in Zurich for five years when my wife and I would regularly visit him.I run the Tuesday evening dance classes at the Swiss Church since two years, and the contact with the Swiss Church has warmed my Christian faith. My Methodist upbringing in central Manchester showed me how Christian values could help those in the community achieve fulfilling lives.

The Consistoire are pleased to announce that two new members have been co-opted to the board of trustees. We are also delighted to inform that Johannes Reich has agreed to take on the role of President.

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Matt’s take on Swissness

Cardboard & Caviar

If you ask many British people what they think about when they think of Switzerland they will probably say, ‘chocolate’ or ‘watches’ or they might say

‘mountains’ or ‘cheese’. Some might even talk about neutrality during the wars or the Red Cross. Many will not be familiar with the rich and diverse culture and tradition in art, music and theology, just to scratch the surface.

I was first introduced to Switzerland on a family holiday as a thirteen year old boy. We were staying with some friends of my parents who lived near Lucerne. My memories are a bit fragmented but I can still picture swimming in an enormous lake with my siblings, cycling down what I presume must have been a mountain, pristine youth hostels and most of all the Fondue. Being a life long lover of cheese, Fondue is something

that I was unlikely to forget.

That seems like an age ago to me but working at the Swiss Church has led me to once again ponder and appreciate Swiss culture. Apart from all the lovely chocolate and cheese that is brought into the office by visitors from Switzerland I think that I have an interesting perspective because I have simultaneously experienced both the old and the new, tradition and innovation. Through the Swiss Connections concert series I have witnessed wonderful recitals of work by composers such as Joachim Raff and also emerging talents from Switzerland like Laurent Estoppey and Antoine Francoise who are forging new paths as the future of the Swiss cultural tradition.

During last year’s Goldsmiths exhibition my perception of yodelling was transformed. I can now begin to appreciate it as an art form that has its roots deep in the culture and the mountains of Switzerland. I love the

Swiss appreciation for the outdoors, both rural and urban. I enjoyed a personal tour of Zurich from Carla which included ancient, historic and more contemporary aspects of the city. I have a photo somewhere of me standing next to Zwingli’s statue.

I have enjoyed all of this, but my favourite Swiss tradition is the same as it was when I was a boy: Fondue. A particular highlight of the year so far has been the Fondue Night on 11 February. One of the things I love most about a Fondue is that it is a food for sharing. It is a food for community. Fondue is warm and inviting, it is hospitable. When we sit down for a Fondue, we literally break bread together as we share wine and stories around the pot. It is a food that brings people together, a food for a happy occasion. It is something that Kate and I have taken home and it is now a treat for our son Reuben and we look forward to many more.

Matt Stone

Many years ago artist and photographer Andy Warhol said everyone is famous for fifteen minutes. Judging by recent events in my life he may have underestimated things! Leading up to and during my recent photography exhibition ‘Cardboard & Caviar’ I certainly had my moment in the sun. I somehow managed to appear on BBC London news, have an article written about my story in the Evening Standard and feature on an award winning fashion bloggers website. I must admit, it gave my ego a huge boost but more importantly it all helped raise awareness of the homeless situation in London which was the main aim of the exhibition. The exhibition was a collection of photographs that I had taken of places where I slept while

homeless in London.

The exhibition seems to have been a success with several pieces being sold and lots of generous donations. To date, the exhibition raised £1070, of which half are going to the Swiss Church and half to the homeless charity Simon Community to help fund future projects.

Memories of the opening night are a bit hazy, due to nerves and a couple of celebratory glasses of wine. However, I am reliably informed that I did not embarrass myself during my speech. I would like to take this opportunity to say a big thankyou to everyone who visited the exhibition. Hopefully it got the message across that more and more

people are living in doorways in this city but also that creativity and community are things that bring hope as we try to find solutions.

Andy Palfreyman

One of my street homes

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Focus: Goldsmiths Exhibition

How the idea was born, by David MollinIt was in 2009 that I was asked by the then President of the Swiss Church, Ursula Jost and Reverend Nathalie Dürmüller to help develop an arts programme. This

request coincided with the completion of extensive renovations to the Swiss Church by the architects Christ and Gantenbein, whose intriguing brief was to create a seamless blend of the cultural and the sacred within the Swiss Church.

Church and art have a common ground and history. The hope and desire to emphasis the meeting between those attending the Swiss Church for worship and those stepping through its doors to admire its architecture and cultural significance,

sparked the idea for a collaboration with the MFA in curating at Goldsmiths University of London, a curating course that welcomed a dialogue and debate with such an interesting space as the Swiss Church, and that embraced a more general engagement with the historic relationship between religion and art.

When Nathalie Dürmüller and myself initially went to present the idea of this collaboration between the MFA curating at Goldmiths and the Swiss Church to Andrew Renton, the then Head of the program, he immediately embraced the idea, excited by what he called its ‘radical’ nature. I too believe that the dialogue between art and church is important and it is to the credit firstly of Nathalie Dürmüller and now Reverend Carla Maurer, who have worked hard to maintain this collaboration and have

encouraged the idea of proper open debate between the Swiss Church and the MFA in curating at Goldsmiths University. It is also due to the Consistoire and their trust in the project, and the parishioners for their genuine interest, that this collaboration has been allowed to flourish each year.

The successful partnership between the Swiss Church and the MFA Curating programme at Goldsmiths, University of London, is now in its sixth year. This is a valuable opportunity for our emerging curators to work with the church community to present an annual exhibition of contemporary visual art in the heart of Soho. All of the curators and artists have been inspired by the architecture of Christ and Gantenbein and have created new work in response to the site and its social community.

Past winning projects, by Ele CarpenterThe programme started in 2011 with sculptural works by artists Davide Cascio and Ilona Sagar, curated by Anca Rujoiu and Manuela Schlumpf. Then in 2012 Heidi Brunschweiler invited Swiss Artist Monika Rechsteiner to present ‘In Transition’ which people may remember for the dramatic black balloons that slowly floated down from the ceiling throughout the exhibition. The installation included a video-montage of an abandoned nuclear reactor projected onto the apse which subtly addressed a possible relation between the field of religion and science.

In 2013 Julia Marchand’s exhibition ‘The First and the Last Folding’ presented new work by artists Pauline Beaudemont and Martin Soto Climent, who drew upon the symbolism of the Swiss Church to explore complementary narratives concerned with ritual order and religious orientations. For the fourth exhibition curator Adrienne Groen commissioned an installation by artist Dorine van Meel whose recollections of her childhood memories of churches were rearticulated through ambient layers of sound and light. Last year ‘Hear My Voice and Answer Me’ explored the vocal

act of yodelling through sound, video and acoustics; curated by Nathalie Boobis in collaboration with artists Rachael Finney and Anna F C Smith, featuring artist Doreen Kutzke. These exhibitions have opened up different ways of experiencing the church and reflecting upon cultural and political investigations of the space.

This year we look forward to supporting Kirsty White to realise her exhibition in March with artist Richard Müller in partnership with the Covent Garden Dragon Hall Trust.

Since six years, the Swiss Church and the MFA Curating programme at Goldsmiths University of London, have a successful partnership and run a yearly competition for first year art curating students. An art curator’s job entails being responsible for a museum’s collection, selecting art to be displayed in a museum, organizing art exhibitions in galleries or public spaces, researching artists, plus writing catalogue essays. The exhibition at the Swiss Church gives students of the Goldsmiths programme the opportunity to curate an art exhibition in a unique space, creating a dialogue between the sacred and the secular world.

Here, David Mollin, teacher at the LCC University of Art, and Ele Carpenter, Senior Curator at Goldsmiths University who run the program in collaboration with the Swiss Church team, recall how it all started.

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This year’s winner of the Goldsmiths competition, Kirsty White (London, 1989) is a curator based in London, currently completing an MFA Curating at Goldsmiths, University of London. She studied BA Fine Art, at Curtin University, Western Australia, and was an invited scholar at École Nationale Supérieure des beaux-arts, Paris in 2009-10.

Questions to Kirsty White

Q: What did inspire you about the Swiss Church to submit a proposal for the Goldsmiths competition?

A: It is not often that you have the opportunity to work in a space as beautiful and unique as the Swiss Church. I was immediately struck by its whiteness and simplicity. The architecture is very present, but also neutral and sparse. It can seem vast with its high ceilings and echoing acoustics, while also being extremely intimate and tangible. I have never been to a church like it. The artist Richard Müller and I were also drawn to the use of the church by the local community which will be acknowledged in the finished installation.

Q: Tell us about the project – what can we expect to see in the art work curated by you?

A: The installation will look at how 3D scanning and printing technologies can be used within the Swiss Church. The development of this technology is really exciting, as it is now possible to digitise and produce almost anything. But does a 3D representation carry any of the same meaning as the original object or the ritual carried out in real life? We are going to explore this by scanning a range of objects from the Swiss Church; the

clock, the cross, the old church chairs etc. The digital files will be either 3D printed into sculptures or digitally animated into short films which will be projected onto the walls of the Swiss Church.

We are also going to be working with Covent Garden Dragon Hall Trust to conduct a series of workshops with their 8-11 year old after school club. We will work with the young people to scan a range of items, both personal objects as well as objects that are significant to the Swiss Church.

Q: How different is it exhibiting in a sacral space rather than in an art gallery?

A: Historically, churches were places where people went to see art. Cathedrals across Europe are decorated by frescoes, carvings and painted altarpieces. Conversely, people visit an art gallery today for of the same reason they used to visit a cathedral - to replenish the spirit.

The modernist conception of the art gallery - the white cube - was developed to provide a neutral context for viewing art. White was first used on gallery walls at the beginning of the 20th century. Prior to this gallery walls were a grey/green or red. The Swiss Church is an interesting example of a church because its architecture is almost art gallery-like. It is a functioning church though. This governs the use of the space, and art is not the primary consideration. I find this quite refreshing: it puts the work of the curator in perspective.

To see art in a church today is a nod to a former age. This project is especially interesting because it is commissioned by the Swiss Church. It sees the return of the church to artistic patronage.

Q: What does religion mean to you?

A: I am not religious but my uncle (who married my mum’s sister) is Jewish. Some of my favourite times with my family have been celebrating Hanukah or Passover with them. This is a part of religion I really appreciate - ritual and collective faith. I am personally not sure what I believe, but I am glad that others have religion. I am happy that people have found guidance and enrichment through faith.

Q: Why did you decide to become a curator and what are your hopes for the future?

A: I decided to become a curator because I love art. I studied Fine Art as my undergraduate degree and I moved to Edinburgh shortly after I graduated. I found working with artists and art, but not making it, a completely different experience. I liked the fast-pace of setting up an exhibition and thinking on my feet and problem solving. I am also interested in how exhibitions can provide a platform for critical comment and even social change.

Focus: Goldsmiths Exhibition

Johnathan Richard Driscoll and Helen Louise Atkinson got married at the Swiss Church on 16 January 2016. We wish them a

happy and long life together!

“There is no fear in love.” (1 John 4:18)

Reverend Carla Isabel Maurer and Julian Paul Simmons tied the knot at Camden Townhall on 29 January 2016.

“We want to thank everyone for your support, blessings and good wishes! We feel truly honoured.“

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Announcements

People from our communityAriane BraillardIn this section we want to give people a voice who are associated with our church.

My life reminds me a bit of a jigsaw. Born in Geneva where I have studied literature, music and social history, and where I later headed the offices of a private art dealer, I spent some years in Paris with my first husband. During those years, I also volunteered for a human rights association dealing with prisoners of consciousness behind the iron curtain.In my mid-forties, after quitting my job, I decided to settle in New York where I became the head of the Swiss Institute (a small cultural space). This is also where I met my future husband whom I married last year.Personal circumstances brought me to London in 1993. I received my BA (hon) in fine arts and was a trustee of the Swiss Cultural Fund in Britain for 17 years. Since its inception in 1988, I have also been actively involved

as a trustee of the Fondation Braillard Architectes. I am now sitting on the Art Committee of the Swiss Church in London to which I originally suggested the collaboration with the Goldsmiths University of London.Art - a song, a poem, a painting - can build a bridge between people from different cultures, backgrounds, languages. As art is holistic by nature, it is a unique communication tool with a therapeutic potential: it brings together the emotional, the mental and the spiritual. This is why art, in all its guises, has always taken central stage in my life. Art helps to understand better other minds and sensibilities, an experience I am very fond of, as people are important to me.

Ariane Braillard

Weddings

BirthdaysOn 6 December 2015, Albert Bertin celebrated his 90th anniversary at the

Swiss Church. He recalls that the day of his birth was also a Sunday.We wish Albert all the best for the coming year, and God bless!

We congratulate Kate and Matt Stone on the birth of their baby daughter Clara Bryony Rhoda Stone. Clara was born on 7 November 2015,

and made Reuben a big brother.We wish the Stone family all the best and every blessing!

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Events @ the Swiss ChurchForthcoming events

Easter 2016Easter Sunday 27 April, 11am:Family Service with Egg HuntOn Easter Sunday we remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave, and we celebrate new life and the hope that this gives us. It is the most important day in the Christian calendar! This year will be extra special for the children as we will prepare an Easter egg hunt in the church. We are also going to be joined by guest musicians. Lunch and refreshments will be served afterwards to break your lent fasting and enjoy each other’s company.

“What happened on the day of Easter became, was and remained the centre around which everything else moves. For everything lasts its time, but the love of God – which was at work and was expressed in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead – lasts forever. Because this event took place, there is no reason to despair, and even when we read the newspaper with all its confusing and frightening news, there is every reason to hope.” (Karl Barth)

Art3-18 March: Goldsmiths ExhibitionEvery year the Swiss Church invites students from the MFA Curating course at Goldsmiths University to submit proposals for a curatorial project.

Opening Night:Thursday 3 March 6.30-10pmOpening Hours: 6-9pmFriday 4, Saturday 5, Thursday 10, Friday 11, Saturday 12, Thursday 17, Friday 18 March

You can find more information on this year’s project in Focus, page 4-5.

MusicOrgan Recitals: Saturday 23 April / 25 June, 5pm23 April: Organ Recital by Richard Brasier, St Laurence (Upminster).25 June: Organ Recital by Tyrone Whiting, St Mary’s (Battersea).Entrance is free with retiring collection.

Peter Yardley-Jones and Julian Simmons produced a CD with recordings of the Swiss Church organ. The CD can be purchased at the Swiss Church office for £8.

Swiss Connections:Thursday 31 March / 28 April / 26 May, 7pm31 March: Voices of Lucerne with Hans-Jürg Rickenbacher (director) and Lars Fischer (tenor).28 April: Jackson Beilby Duo with Martyn Jackson (violin) and Ann Beilby (viola).26 May: “Idyll and Refuge” with Patrizio Mazzola (piano) and Céline Beran (moderation).Entrance: £10 / £5 for students and concessions.

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Swiss Church in LondonEglise Suisse de LondresSchweizerkirche in LondonChiesa Svizzera a LondraBaselgia Svizra a Londra

Swiss Church in London, 79 Endell Street London WC2H 9DY

Tel: 020 7836 1418, info@swisschurchlondon.org.ukwww.swisschurchlondon.org.uk

Twitter: @SwissChurchLond & @SwissRevLondonCarla Maurer’s blog http://swissvicarlondon.blogspot.co.uk

Registered charity No. 1094992

We welcome donations by standing order. If you are a UK taxpayer, please fill in a gift aid declaration form.

Hebrews 10:24-25

“Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer.”

“What should young people do with their lives today?Many things, obviously.

But the most daring thing is to create stable communitiesin which the terrible disease of loneliness can be cured.”

(Kurt Vonnegut)

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