Velarde is not mocked takes its title from the English architect Francis Xavier Velarde (1897–1960), who designed the Church of St. Gabriel in Blackburn between 1932 and 1934. The church was regarded as a milestone of modern architecture in England. Clarke’s work was created as a critique of the extensive alterations made to the building in the early 1970s. In 1977, Clarke also worked to the restoration of two of the church’s windows.