New Art Installation Celebrates Magna Carta Anniversary

Durham Cathedral has opened its landmark summer exhibition Magna Carta and the North with a powerful new light-based artwork The Words That Bind Us taking centre stage in the Cathedral’s Nave. 

Commissioned specially for the exhibition, this immersive installation by contemporary artist Nicola Anthony transforms the historic space using projected text across the floor drawn from the various copies of Magna Carta in the Durham Cathedral collection.

“The Words That Bind Us is a conversation across centuries rooted in the ideals of the Magna Carta and shaped by the voices of today," said Nicola Anthony. "It’s a living river of light and language, inviting visitors to reflect on justice, compassion, and community. I hope people leave with a deepened connection to this sacred space, and a sense of belonging to something larger, a shared, evolving vision for a more equitable future, a powerful, ongoing conversation about social justice.”

During the exhibition, which runs through November 2, visitors can select words or phrases that resonate with them, which then grow in size in real-time as part of the projection, creating an ever-changing modern charter.

It forms part of a wider programme of contemporary installations responding to the themes of Magna Carta, including large-scale voiles by artist and photographer Ash Mills suspended between the columns of the Cathedral’s West End and Galilee Chapel. These stained-glass-inspired illustrations tell the story and influence of Magna Carta through a contemporary lens.

The exhibition also features a rare opportunity to view three issues of Magna Carta from the Durham Cathedral collection displayed together for the first time in eight years, celebrating the 800th anniversary of the 1225 issue of Magna Carta. An article on these celebrations and the importance of Magna Carta will appear in the autumn issue of Fine Books & Collections.