Brothers and Sisters

The life of monks and nuns is not well understood today. Our experience of the rush of the contemporary world often awakens an inner longing for rest and spiritual depth. But to choose to live apparently cut off from the world is something many of us find difficult to understand. During his fifty years as a professional photographer Frank Monaco was repeatedly drawn to spiritual and religious subjects. As foreign correspondent of the Catholic magazine Jubilee he was often welcomed as a guest within the walls of enclosed monasteries and convents. This book brings together, often in matching spreads, many of the images he has taken of monks and nuns at work, at prayer, at play and in the service of their communities. The photographs are accompanied by extracts from the simple rules these men and women have elected to follow and which guide every moment of their lives. A selection of these photographs forms part of the permanent collection of the Victoria & Albert museum, London.