St Mary le Strand

✨ Announcing “Decades” by Louise Giovanelli ✨Opening 19 November 2025 at Strand Aldwych. Create London and Westminster City Council present Decades, a major new public artwork by acclaimed artist Louise Giovanelli @louise___giovanelli , transforming St Mary le Strand Church into a shimmering, sculptural illusion. Responding to James Gibb’s iconic St Mary le Strand Church, the large-scale, site-specific work will cover the south-facing façade in a composite image of a draped curtain, producing a sculptural trompe-l'œil form. By revealing details of the alternating colour patterns of the columns, while also covering up areas with fabric, Giovanelli uses different types of translucency to both eclipse and reframe architectural elements while embedding the church at the core of the artwork. Referencing both the theatrical history of the Strand and the church’s Baroque heritage, the work invites viewers to look closer, revealing subtle traces of decades, pollution and restoration in the building’s surface. By day, "Decades" reframes this architectural jewel within the modern city; by night, it glows, turning the church into a stage of light, history and transformation. 📍 St Mary le Strand Church @stmarylestrand , Strand Aldwych 🗓 19 Nov 2025-18 Jan 2026 💬 Free & open to all Commissioned by Create London for Westminster City Council @citywestminster , with support from London Heritage Quarter @londonheritagequarter , Liberty @libertylondon , and White Cube @whitecube , and developed in collaboration with David Chipperfield Architects @davidchipperfieldarchitects . #LouiseGiovanelli #CreateLondon #WestminsterCityCouncil #StrandAldwych #PublicArt #LondonArt #StMaryLeStrand #Decades #ArtInPublic #LondonCulture #FreeArtInLondon #PublicArtLondon Render by Richard Henley @richard__henley

Join us on the journey to save St Mary le Strand Church. We are excited to share our new film with you, introducing the Jewel in the Strand project. St Mary le Strand is an architectural gem which has stood magnificently at the heart of the Strand for over 300 years. It is now time to transform this building for generations to come. Watch the film to find out more and sign up for our newsletters to keep in touch. Links in the bio. #JewelintheStrand #London #Heritage #Church #Architecture #Architecturelovers #LondonHeritage #Westminster

An overlooked architectural gem in central London! St Mary le Strand (@stmarylestrand ) was designed by James Gibbs and completed in 1723. It was his first work after travelling and training in Italy and is heavily inspired by classical architecture. It has a wonderful, decorative ceiling and they are working to make it even more of a community and cultural hub for the area. There is a link in my bio if you would like to read the more full blog post for all the history 😊 Have you ever been inside the beautiful St Mary le Strand? #london #londonhistory #livinglondonhistory #churchesofinstagram #hiddenlondon #secretlondon #architecture #architecturelovers

Happy Ascension Day from St Mary le Strand The Christopher Wood Choral Foundation sang from our church roof as part of a short service at midday today. Viri Galilaei, by W Byrd   Original audio recorded on the ground and on the roof! #jewelinthestrand #london #church #choral #ascension

Cheeky Cherubs? Why the cherubs in St Mary le Strand church are not as innocent as they look… Come to St Mary le Strand Decoded on 10th June at 7.30 pm to find out more about the secret history of the church. Link in bio for tickets #london #church #secrethistory #decoded #cheekycherubs

Back to music🎼 After a short pause (and a little escape), here’s a fresh selection of music events across Europe worth dressing up for this May. Swipe, save your favourites, and let music set your calendar again💗

🎶 Vivaldi - Domine Fili Unigenite, from Gloria Performed by the L'Inviti Singers, April 2026 at St Mary le Strand #trend #fyp #choir #whatsonlondon #linvitisingers #baroque #vivaldi

What have we got here? A beautiful little concertina postcard we’ve made with lovely pictures of St Mary le Strand and short answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about the church. #london #church #jewelinthestrand #visitlondon

It’s the first of the month: May Day Lots of beautiful tulips in full bloom in the St Mary le Strand garden! #London #Church #Spring #Tulip #MayDay

Happy St George’s Day from St Mary le Strand church in London. Patriotism is love of country and like the love that St Paul tells us about in 1 Cor 13, it should be patient, kind, not envious, or boastful, or arrogant or rude; it should be hopeful and enduring. May you love the place you live. #jewelinthestrand #stgeorgesday #London #Church #love

⭐ Gloria - Vivaldi 🎶 Performed by the L'Inviti Singers, the Guest Artists choir, at their concert at St Mary le Strand earlier this month. Watch more at / #visitlondon #whatsonlondon #londonconcerts #londonmusic #livemusic

‘The Everythingists’ by Es Devlin is now on show at The V&A East Storehouse. Es Devlin’s work ‘CONGREGATION’ was shown at St Mary le Strand church in October 2024. This work has been made in response to the beautiful Firebird backcloth by Natalia Goncharova painted in 1926. #LondonArt