Exhibition Review: The Papestry

Words: Noah Thorpe – Year 12 Work Experience Student

Over the course of nine months, artist Matt D. Wright has produced an exquisite piece of art depicting Lincoln’s Bailgate. The piece, almost six metres in length, is housed in the Usher Gallery until Sunday the 12th of July.

Inspired by the return of the Bayeux Tapestry to England, Wright sought to create a work of art that would capture the historical and cultural centre of Lincoln city. Beginning his work on the 9th of August 2025, Wright worked at a scale of 1:44 centimetres, sketching out roughly 247 metres of the street, from the County Assembly Rooms down to Norman House in impressive detail. He eventually finished his task on the 1st of May 2026.

This is not the first time the county has seen an artistic undertaking of this type, with this project echoing William Brown’s extensive Louth Panorama, which was produced throughout the 1850s, as well as being similar to many of Wright’s other lengthy projects, such as his Lincoln ‘Pub Crawl’ piece, which was drawn in 2023.

Wright has no formal artistic training, and learned to draw during his downtime between musical tours throughout his 20s and 30s. His medium for this recent piece was fine liner pens on watercolour paper, which allows him to accentuate the smallest details, down to each individual brick.

The resulting artwork is not purely architectural, however, as a few different creatures can be found lurking in the shopfronts’ windows, notably cats and ghosts, and of course the traditional Lincoln Imp. Cats seem to be a particular love of Wright’s, given his Instagram username (@matandhiscat), and he is no stranger to the spookier side of the city’s history, with a prior piece being titled ‘Haunted Lincoln’. Personally, I was able to spot four ghosts and three cats, however more may be hidden in the nooks and crannies of the art piece for a close viewer to find.

The exhibition space confirms the tremendous scale of Wright’s work thanks to the accompanying video footage leading down the area that Wright has depicted. As well as this, the walls of the gallery feature historical insight into the area, giving a sense of truly how much the buildings have seen, with one building (46-47 Steep Hill) dating back to 1170.

Even for those who have been following Matt’s progress month by month, seeing the finished piece as a whole will illuminate the finer details of the artwork, and it firmly puts The Papestry in its historical context, being only just down the hill from the area it illustrates. The turnout I witnessed today at the exhibition was evidence that this piece can be enjoyed by all ages, with visitors ranging from children to seniors. Don’t miss your opportunity to catch this special event.

The Papestry is on show at the Usher Gallery until the 12th July 2026. Open Thursday to Monday 10am-4pm. For more information, visit LincolnMuseum.com. Follow Matt D. Wright on Instagram @matandhiscat.