Visual Art

The Spirit of Art

Christ Church Cathedral residency program houses, inspires local artists

Mike Seitz, photos by Andrea Paulseth |

PUT A RING ON IT! Metalsmith Liz Stingl, left, speaks with fellow artist in residence, painter Lori Chilefone, inside Stingl’s studio at Christ Church Cathedral.
Metalsmith Liz Stingl, left, speaks with fellow artist in residence, painter Lori Chilefone,
inside Stingl’s studio at Christ Church Cathedral.

Cathedrals are often a source of breathtaking art, whether it be depictions of events in the Bible through stained-glass windows or the architectural style of the building itself. When photographer Hope Greene and her husband came to the Eau Claire area, she was interested in how to provide resources to local artists through the church. Her husband, Michael, is the dean of the Christ Church Cathedral, which happens to have an abundance of unused space. As a result, the Cathedral’s Artist in Residence program was started in 2012.

The program offers two artists private studio space at the cathedral for one year, providing them with a cost-free studio in which to work. In return, the artists give back to the church by presenting two lectures about their work and donating a piece of artwork to the cathedral’s collection of local art. Hope explained that one purpose of this program is to bring the contemporary art world and the church together.

“I believe that the arts and the church are at their best when they are honestly looking for what is true and aren’t satisfied with what is comfortable or pretty. So I think they have a lot to learn from each other.”
– Hope Greene, director of the Artist in Residence program at Christ Church Cathedral

“I believe that the arts and the church are at their best when they are honestly looking for what is true and aren’t satisfied with what is comfortable or pretty,” Greene said. “So I think they have a lot to learn from each other.”

Hope is also excited about this program because of the art gallery it is producing. The cathedral is one of the oldest buildings in Eau Claire and will continue to be here for a long time. If every artist admitted for the program donates a piece of art, then down the road Christ Church Cathedral will have a remarkable collection.

I got the chance to speak with Liz Stingl, one of the program’s current artists. Stingl’s medium of art is metal smithing, particularly in the form of jewelry. She even made her own wedding band. She has an incredibly deep passion for the art form and told me that something she loves doing is putting non-traditional color on metal. “I really like to push the boundaries on traditional jewelry,” she said.

Working with metal requires space, however, and this has been one of the biggest reasons that the program has been a huge help to Stingl. Prior to the Cathedral Artist in Residence program, her work studio was in the corner of a garage that her neighbor owned. This didn’t create an ideal working environment. With windows that cast a natural, pleasant light across the room and adequate space to work, the program has provided a studio that Stingl desperately needed.

However, the program did much more than that. When Stingl started working in her neighbor’s garage, she also started her business, Casual Ore Formal. The Cathedral Artist in Residence program has given her a much more legitimate location for her business, but has also been essential in helping her take the next step. Recently, she has signed a lease for a penthouse space downtown that will eventually be used for Casual Ore Formal. A very exciting step, but one she might not have taken if she hadn’t been in the program.

“It would have been a really big jump to go from the corner of my neighbor’s garage to this penthouse that is beyond perfect,” she said.

She hopes to have a grand opening at her new penthouse location early next summer. Her second lecture will take place at the Volume One Gallery on April 16 at 6:30pm. There she will also unveil the piece of art she’ll donate to the cathedral’s collection.

If you’d be interested in this opportunity, the next deadlines for applications will be in early 2015. For more information on the program and how to apply, visit christchurcheauclaire.org.