Event Details

About the Event

Timetable & Duration

2nd October to 27th November, 2025

This course will take place online on Thursday evenings, 7-9pm. This course will be taught over 9 weeks (including a one-week break) via online real-time meetings & instruction.​

Introduction to the course

Contemporary art and church worship are not always associated with each other. Art can be confrontational, beautiful and breath-taking or all of these and more at once! This course will explore the integration of contemporary visuals arts in Christian worship. We will learn from each other, from considering a diverse range of examples, and contemporary artists engaging with Christian faith. Participants will be encouraged to develop their own creative ideas and nurture their imagination, along with ways of increasing creative participation and artistic inclusion in congregations.    ​

This course will cover the following topics:

• What can contemporary art bring to our worship and how?

• Danger art at work! Art and the church

• What’s space got to do with it? Art, environment and context

• How can we use text and image in worship?

• Imagination: Lost in wonder, love and praise

• Materials and materiality

• Cultivating creative participation

This course aims to:​

• Introduce participants to the use of contemporary visual arts in theological and liturgical contexts;

• Provide students with the skills to engage and analyse visual arts in a variety of worship settings.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Evaluate the relationship between contemporary visual arts and theology.

• Explain how and why visual arts can be engaged in a variety of worship contexts and Church environments.

• Apply practical skills and ideas for developing creative possibilities in liturgy and worship.

Course information 

This course is suitable for learners from a wide variety of backgrounds.​

Each class will be taught through a range of online discussion, exercises, and activities, viewing and reading. Each week participants will be introduced to a range of online materials, including video, and articles. Learning materials and interaction will be accessible using the learning platform, Moodle. Zoom will be used as a meeting tool.

Access to these tools will be supported by the University course administration. More information about the use of these will be provided once enrolled. In addition, learners who enrol for credit will be able to access digitised materials, articles, and books via the University of Glasgow’s library.

Learners may either choose to undertake assessments, and thus qualify for 10 credit points towards a Higher Education certificate or other Glasgow University approved programmes, or who may just wish to engage with the learning programme for their own personal benefit. Graduates are equally welcome.

If you take the course for credit, the formal assessment for this course consists of the following:

• Reflective assignment 40% (800 words) comparing and contrasting two artworks used in worship settings.

• Portfolio assignment 60% (1200 words and images ) submitted at the end of the course, comprising submitting 4 journal entries. 
   

Support, guidance and feedback will be available for all assessment.

Cost £207* *Priority Area subsidy available for this course. Email TrinityCollegeGlasgow@gmail.com for more information.

Sponsorship or subsidies may be available through your own church or denomination and we encourage you to approach them with the details of the course.