The 'White Monks: A Life in Shadows' photography exhibition unveils scenes of life among Trappist monks from three monasteries in Spain.
Here we present a selection of photographs taken in Monasterio de La Oliva in Navarra, Monasterio de San Pedro de Cardeña in Burgos, and Abadía San Isidro de Dueñas in Palencia, by British documentary photographer and filmmaker Francesca Phillips. The exhibition is currently open in London at Holy Trinity Church and will also be displayed at Wolfson College in Oxford from May 6.
The Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance is a Roman Catholic contemplative, enclosed order of monks and nuns.
They evolved from a succession of reforms to return to the true spirit of the Benedictines.
Today their spiritual descendants, both monks and nuns, number nearly four thousand in forty-four countries.
Abadiìa San Isidro de DuenÞas, Palencia
The monks take vows of stability, conversion, which constitutes fidelity to monastic life and obedience.
The Trappist monks live in solitude in an atmosphere of silence.
These photographs offer a glimpse into an ancient way of life in extraordinary counterpoint to the modern world.
Monasterio de San Pedro de Carden in Burgos
They form a testament to lives devoted to spiritual service.
