Bread, Wine and Scent Are Coming to a London Cemetery Chapel
A London cemetery chapel is getting an unusual exhibition this August. For three days, Anna Kiparis will bring paintings on semi-precious stone to Brompton Cemetery Chapel, alongside wine, bread and a fragrance created live in the space.
A Time to Cast Away Stones runs from 29 to 31 August and follows Kiparis’s earlier project, A Time to Gather Stones. Both take their starting point from a line in Ecclesiastes: “a time to gather stones, and a time to cast them away.”
For the new exhibition, Kiparis has painted directly onto slices of onyx, agate, carnelian and other semi-precious stones. Veins become rivers, fractures become landscapes and mineral patterns help shape the figures and scenes.
The works will be installed throughout the chapel as independent sculptural objects, with the stones echoing the biblical phrase behind the title. Kiparis draws on stories from the Old and New Testaments, including Sinai, Noah’s Flood, Abraham and Isaac, the Covenant, Jericho and the Resurrection. The works explore faith, responsibility and human dignity without simply illustrating the biblical stories.
Cattle appear throughout the works, with oxen, cows and mules acting as witnesses rather than protagonists. Their presence draws on their traditional association with the Nativity and raises questions about innocence and the value placed on life.
Perfumer Tatiana Zhuk of London perfume house EX IDOLO will create a fragrance live in the chapel across the three days. The scent will change each day: dry grass on the first, green grass on the second and oasis on the third, before the three come together as one scent.
The private view on 29 August will include wine, bread and an artist talk. Further talks will take place during the exhibition, with Kiparis discussing the materials, biblical narratives and ideas behind the work.
A Time to Cast Away Stones is curated by Anzhela Popova and runs from 29 to 31 August at Brompton Cemetery Chapel, Fulham Road, London SW10 9UG.
Exhibition: A Time to Cast Away Stones
Artist: Anna Kiparis
Curator: Anzhela Popova
Dates: 29–31 August 2026
Venue: Brompton Cemetery Chapel, Fulham Road, London SW10 9UG
Elena Leo is the Culture & Lifestyle Editor of Ikon London Magazine.
