Daily Inspiration Quote by Giles Gilbert Scott

Polite English society runs on gifts, and Giles Gilbert Scott knows it. That is why he opens by conceding the “delicate matter” of refusal: he’s acknowledging the social trap before he springs it. Then he detonates the line with “so atrocious” - a word that refuses compromise. For an architect, especially one shaping sacred spaces, the insult isn’t merely aesthetic snobbery; it’s a defense of the church’s visual theology. A bad statue doesn’t just look wrong. It warps the mood, the hierarchy of attention, the sense of reverence. In a church, ugliness can feel like a doctrinal error.

The real subtext is about authority. Gifts are rarely free; they arrive with implied veto power from donors, committees, or pious benefactors who want to see their taste immortalized near the altar. Scott’s phrasing - “every endeavour should be made” - sounds bureaucratic, almost committee-proof, but it’s a call to arms. He’s recruiting process itself as a weapon: delay it, relocate it, “accidentally” misplace it, do whatever it takes. The line reads like a memo written by someone who has fought too many parish politics battles to believe that honesty alone will work.

Contextually, Scott stands at the intersection of modernity and tradition, a professional tasked with keeping institutions coherent while tastes and patrons shift around them. The wit is dry, but the stakes are serious: once installed, bad art becomes permanent, and permanence is the church’s whole brand.