Peace Doves, a mass-participation artwork by Peter Walker, took centre stage in the Nave of the cathedral. It was made up of thousands of individually handmade paper doves that were suspended above the Cathedral’s historic Nave.

The artwork was set to music by composer David Harper, making it an even more atmospheric experience. Before the installation, each of the 15,000 paper doves needed to be created by visitors to Durham Cathedral.

Andrew Usher, Chief Officer: Visitor Experience and Enterprise at Durham Cathedral, said,

“We were delighted to showcase the Peace Doves installation and were aware that it would take a long time to handcraft the amount of doves needed. So we asked for the help of visitors, schools, and local communities, inviting everyone to come and create one of the 15,000 doves that made up this meaningful installation. As a mass-participation artwork, it was a unique opportunity for people to be involved in creating something truly special.”

Visitors, groups, and local communities were invited to head to Durham Cathedral to create a dove for the installation. People were given a paper dove on which they were encouraged to write a message of peace, love, friendship, or hope.