Newsletter 133
Issue Autumn 2021
Table of Contents Dear Friends (letter from the Chair of the Friends) .................................................. 3 Update from The Cheltenham Trust ............................................................................ 4 Events ............................................................................................................................... 5 The Story of Tewkesbury Abbey: John Jeffreys ................................................ 5 Sezincote and Chipping Campden .................................................................... 5 Friends’ Reunion and Reception ....................................................................... 6 Christmas Event to Worcester ........................................................................... 7 The Life of Dr Edward Thomas Wilson: David Elder ..................................... 7 Compton Verney ................................................................................................. 8 Events and Exhibitions .................................................................................................. 9 Art at Cheltenham Literature Festival ......................................................................... 9 Exhibition Review Tokyo: Art & Photography ............................................................ 10 Holst Victorian House ................................................................................................... 11 Court Barn ...................................................................................................................... 13 PocketSights: Cheltenham in Antarctica Walk ........................................................... 14 New Members ................................................................................................................. 15 Where to Visit: Osborne House ................................................................................... 16 Favourite Works of Art: Freda Derrick ....................................................................... 17 Reviews ............................................................................................................................ 18 Immerse Yourself in Bath ................................................................................... 18 Art and Freedom ................................................................................................. 19 Herbert Ponting ................................................................................................... 20 The Battle of Tewkesbury .................................................................................... 20 Highnam Court and The Holy Innocents Church .......................................... 21 Artists in THEIR Residence ............................................................................................ 22 Photo credits ................................................................................................................... 22 Contacts ........................................................................................................................... 23
Cravat made of limewood with raised and openwork carving, by Grinling Gibbons (c. 1690) (© Victoria and Albert Museum, London) Read more on page 8
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Sample of William Morris wallpaper printed in Blackthorn design (© The Cheltenham Trust / Cheltenham Borough Council). Read more on page 9
Friends of the Wilson Newsletter
Dear Friends, I’m very pleased to tell you that Alex Boulton, who has worked hard on the past two issues of our Newsletter, has now taken over as sole Editor. In thanking her for the enthusiasm and editorial expertise she brings to the role, I want also to acknowledge just how much we all owe to Martin Renshaw. Technically, Martin handed over the editorship eighteen months ago to become Membership Secretary; in reality he has continued to work behind the scenes to ensure the Newsletter continues be the essential point of contact between the Friends of The Wilson (the charity that exists to support the Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum) and all its members.
usually for reasons beyond our control – as the past eighteen months have shown only too clearly.
Although you will be reading this letter in early September, I am writing it in late July, shortly after the highly successful – though much delayed – outing to Highnam Court and the Church of the Holy Innocents. The day was greatly enjoyed by all – and you can read Rob Ingram’s report on the outing later in this Newsletter. You’ll also find here full details and booking information for all our planned events and outings between September and January.
Museum straplines have had a chequered history: the V&A’s bold claim – ‘Ace café, with a nice museum attached’ – amused some, outraged others, but at least got people talking. For myself, I prefer the Holburne’s simple statement: ‘Changing Lives through Art’. Unlocking the power of art to enrich and even to transform lives is surely why art galleries and museums matter so much to the communities they serve and to the visitors whose visits help them to thrive. I’d say it is also why the people who work in them and for them – not least Friends’ organisations like ours – matter too.
Please do support these if you can; the programme put together by our Events team is at the heart of what we do to find ways of engaging all our Friends and to bring us together. We aim to make a surplus on each event – whether a talk and outing or a special evening such as the Reunion Reception at the Pump Room, planned for Thursday 7th October. We are always reluctant to cancel any advertised event; thankfully, this happens only rarely and
Just recently, I visited the Holburne Museum in Bath and was impressed by its architecture, by the quality of its temporary exhibitions and by the friendly, knowledgeable room stewards, volunteers all; but what has left the most lasting impression on me is the Holburne’s strapline, its statement of what it stands for.
With all good wishes; I hope to see many of you – whether for the first, or for the umpteenth, time at our events this autumn.
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Update from The Cheltenham Trust Following the closure of The Wilson in March 2020 as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, a communications, marketing and engagement programme was developed to maintain the profile of The Wilson while building new audiences and engaging with new cultural and artistic communities. Ahead of The Wilson re-opening in April 2022, engagement is key to ensuring awareness and to attract an audience and appetite for what it will offer as a key cultural destination in Cheltenham. The draft communications, marketing and engagement plan positions The Wilson as a revamped, vibrant space. It will host a diverse cultural exhibition and events programme that aims to increase footfall and visitor numbers, and the participation of local artists and groups, to deliver a financially sustainable model for the future. The plan prioritises the refurbishment programme and a new events, exhibitions, workshops and activities programme, and the artist studios. It sets out the timeline for key milestones to keep key players updated, maintain the profile of The Wilson and keep engagement high. An engagement programme has been in place since summer 2020 to keep stakeholders, partners and the community connected to The Wilson while the building is closed. A programme of events and activities was established last summer, taking The Wilson to the community with outdoor exhibitions and events. That was expanded further this summer with the launch of The Wilson on Tour, a summer series of in-person, talks, workshops and activities created and led by The Wilson team, and held at Pittville Pump Room. 4
A new family focused activity, Tots and Tales storytelling, is proving particularly popular and will bring a new audience and demographic to the art gallery and museum. Dates for the autumn and winter series will be announced shortly. The pandemic has driven people online and The Wilson has steadily built audiences over the past 16 months. Engagement is significantly higher than before the pandemic. The drive since March 2020 has been to build new audiences via digital platforms, increasing The Wilson’s reach. Data capture is a key element of the programme and booking online has made it more effective. Feedback and interaction are built into every event to harvest opinions, suggestions, customer interests and requests. Analytics provide crucial information and feed into current and future programming. An Associates’ Strategy will ensure that all volunteers are recruited into roles that supplement the paid workforce. Associates will be recruited as part of a team based on the needs of the organisation, including additional skills and expertise. These roles will be greatly valued by the organisation, with some generic and some specialist roles across the organisation such as supporting the collections. The timeline for the return of any volunteers is April 2022, subject to the Trust having moved out of recovery because of the pandemic. A communications and engagement plan will activate this autumn to update, inform and promote the new ways of working and the opportunities available. Sara Oliver, Head of Communications, Marketing and Customer Engagement
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Events If you would like to attend one or more of the following events, please complete the online or enclosed paper booking form. To receive a Zoom invitation to an online talk, don’t forget to include your email address. ‘Jewels in the Crown’: Sezincote and Chipping Campden
The Story of Tewkesbury Abbey: John Jeffreys 13/09/21 10.30am Venue: Online Talk Cost per person: £5 In 2021, Tewkesbury celebrates the 900th anniversary of the consecration of Tewkesbury Abbey. The present Abbey was founded in 1102 to house Benedictine monks and was near completion when consecrated on 23 October 1121. Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, the famous art scholar, described how Tewksbury Abbey quietly dominated the land and skyline with its long nave and tower, ‘probably the largest and finest Romanesque tower in England’. The Abbey’s social importance and influence can still be seen in the layout of Tewkesbury’s streets and buildings, including the Abbot’s Gatehouse, the Abbey Mill, The Vicarage and the Tudor-style dwellings in Church Street. John Jeffreys will talk about the Abbey, its history and how the events of the last 900 years have influenced what we see before us now.
21/09/21 Tour by coach Cost per person: £38 Pick-up points: Evesham Road Pittville Pump Room bus stop (townbound) 9.10am*, Royal Well Coach Station 9.20am, Six Ways (by St Edwards School) 9.30am *at the time of printing there is unrestricted street parking in residential roads off Evesham Road near to the bus stop as well as a small free car park in Albermarle Gate (100 yards). Group Leaders: Martha Alleguen and Adrian Barlow Charles Cockerell, who served with the East India Company in Bengal, inherited Sezincote from his brother John in 1798. Charles, later Sir Charles, employed another brother, Samuel Pepys Cockerell, as an architect to construct a new house and garden on the estate using the elaborate palaces of Rajasthan as a blueprint. Cockerell had already been employed to create the nearby estate of Daylesford, but here he was encouraged to create an extravagant house in the Mogul style, with a central dome and minaret, set off in a formal arrangement with a curving orangery and canal garden. The house was used by John Nash as a model for the Brighton Pavilion after a visit from the Prince of Wales in 1807. It is thought that Sezincote is the only Mogul building that survives in Western Europe.
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Friends of The Wilson will enjoy a private tour of the house, with time to wander through the no less impressive gardens, including the canals and Irish yews of the South Garden, a curving conservatory and all the exceptionally fine planting of the water garden where many rare plants can be seen. Please be advised that the garden contains the normal hazards you would expect of a ravine garden with a stream and pools. There are steep banks that become slippery when wet, unfenced pool sides, stepping stones, and uneven stone slab bridges over the stream. Please exercise caution, especially in wet weather.
Handicraft Trust and has been working on the archives at Court Barn as part of the museum’s HLF-funded ‘Refresh’ project. Please see Mary’s article on Court Barn on page 13. The museum has toilets and a spacious shop selling books, cards and work by local craftsmen. No cafe, but there are many good eating-places nearby. We will depart Chipping Campden at about 4.30pm.
Toilets are available. It is unlikely that refreshments will be available on site. Please feel free to bring your own drinks. A short onward journey takes us to Chipping Campden. Frequently described as the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the Cotswold towns, this is also one of the best-preserved and most historically significant towns in the area due to its association with wool and wealth. The town is also important to the history of the Arts & Craft Movement as many artists and designers took up residence around 1900. After free time in the town for lunch and exploration, we will split into two groups to visit Court Barn Museum for a talk and to view their current exhibition, Pioneers: 101 Years of the Leach Pottery. Court Barn Museum celebrates the Arts and Crafts movement and is home to the archive of C.R. Ashbee’s Guild of Handicraft. We are very fortunate to have Mary Greensted to accompany us on this trip. She is a trustee of the Guild of 6
Friends’ Reunion and Reception: Guest speaker Loyd Grossman 07/10/21 6.30pm to 8.30pm Venue: Pittville Pump Room Cost per person: £10 An important occasion for all Friends, especially for those members who have joined since April 2019 and/or have not previously attended a New Members’ Welcome Morning. The trustees hope that as many Friends as possible will be able to come and enjoy not just meeting together again, but also listening to our guest speaker. Loyd Grossman is one of the foremost advocates today for the importance of preserving Britain’s physical heritage. Tickets are £10 each and include wine and canapés. Please do make every effort to come and celebrate this red-letter date in the Friends’ 2021 calendar.
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Christmas Event to Worcester: Museum of Royal Worcester and the Victorian Christmas Fayre 02/12/21 Day visit by coach Cost per person: £35 Pick-up points: Six Ways 9.15am, Royal Well 9.25am, Evesham Road Pittville Pump Room bus stop (northbound) 9.35am Meet at Royal Worcester Museum 4pm Group Leaders: Adrian Barlow and Martha Alleguen Discover 250 years of colourful stories through the world’s largest collection of Worcester porcelain, and important factory and design archive, in the place where they were made. In stunning galleries, completely refurbished in 2018 with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, you’ll see some of the earliest porcelain made in England and iconic objects like Admiral Lord Nelson’s breakfast teapot, the exquisite 1865 Earl-of-Dudley tea-service and famous Evesham oven-to-table ware. We will be welcomed with refreshments in the galleries of Museum of Royal Worcester followed by a tailor-made talk for the Friends: Worcester Porcelain – A Collector’s Tale by Colin Millett. It is a short walk into the centre of the city for some lunch at your leisure and to enjoy the first day of the Christmas Fayre. The Victorian Fayre was first started back in 1992 by traders from picturesque New Street and Friar Street. Now in its 28th year, the Fayre may have grown significantly but it has stayed true to its traditional roots with plenty of themed characters and festive treats. Please do take advantage of other sights on offer – notably Worcester Cathedral, which offers daily guided tours at 2.30pm (charge applies),
and especially the Christmas Tree Festival – a sparkling display of trees around the medieval Cloister. Advance booking is essential for this particular event (please see their webpage www. worcestercathedral.co.uk/whats-on/ christmas-tree-festival-2021, bookings open in September 2021). Apart from the above, entry to the cathedral is free of charge. Finally, we meet once more at the Museum of Royal Worcester for some Christmas cheer before boarding the coach for home.
‘He went about doing good’: the life of Dr Edward Thomas Wilson (1832– 1918) 10/01/22 10.30am Due to current uncertainties, booking will not open until it is confirmed whether this talk will be in person or online. Cheltenham has been enriched by the Wilson family, a fact recognised by the renaming of its museum and art gallery in 2013, yet the family member who did most for the town is hardly known. Overshadowed both by his son, the Antarctic explorer who perished with Captain Scott at the South Pole, and his brother, renowned for his heroic attempt to rescue General Gordon at Khartoum, his story is intriguingly complex. Drawing on his recently-published biography of Dr Edward Thomas
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Wilson, fondly referred to as ETW, David Elder will tell the story of the man who instigated modern medical practices, including isolation fever hospitals, district nursing and clean drinking water. In the year of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Edward Wilson, it is fitting that ‘the other’ Dr Edward Wilson is also celebrated.
As well as his biography of Dr Edward Thomas Wilson, David Elder has also written on Dr Edward Adrian Wilson, as well as 12 history books on the local area. www.davidelder.net/ Two Exhibitions at Compton Verney: Grinling Gibbons: Centuries in the Making & John Nash: The Landscape of Love and Solace 19/01/22 Tour by coach Cost per person: £35 Pick up points: Evesham Road Pittville Pump Room bus stop (townbound) 9.30am, Royal Well Coach Station 9.40am; Six Ways (by St Edwards School) 9.50am Group Leaders: Martha Alleguen & Sue Pearce We aim to be back in Cheltenham at about 4pm This exhibition will celebrate the 8
remarkable life and legacy of Grinling Gibbons (1648–1721) as part of a yearlong series of events to commemorate the tercentenary of the most renowned British woodcarver of the 17th century. Centuries in the Making will explore the influences that shaped Gibbons’ vision, skills and techniques, and his stylistic and cultural impact. Through sculpture and carving in wood and stone, drawings and sketches, portraits, still life paintings and documents, the exhibition brings fresh perspective to Gibbons and shows how his bold new direction changed the landscape of British carving, sculpture and interiors. We are offered a rare opportunity to see the most comprehensive major exhibition of work in over 50 years by John Nash (1893–1977). Combining acute observation and a strong individual vision, Nash’s oeuvre includes many of the finest depictions of the British landscape created in the 20th century. Often overshadowed by his brother and fellow artist Paul Nash, John Nash has not been the subject of a major exhibition since the Royal Academy’s retrospective exhibition of his work in 1967. Nash was one of a small number of artists who were official war artists in both the First and Second World Wars. Compton Verney is a Georgian mansion set in 120 acres of stunning parkland, designed by Lancelot `Capability` Brown. We invite you to wander the grounds at your leisure. It offers a café/ restaurant and gift shop, lifts to all floors, as well as many outdoor seating areas for picnics. There is a shuttle bus from the car park to the art gallery for those unable to walk longer distances. Morning refreshments are included on arrival at Compton Verney.
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Events and Exhibitions
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Please check websites.
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The Wilson (online exhibitions) • Artists in THEIR Residence • Sisterhood • Colour-ways • HUMANKIND • The Virtual Memory Lane Cafe The Holburne Museum, Bath • Canaletto: Painting Venice (until 5 September) • Thomas Lawrence Coming of Age (online until 31 May 2022) Victoria Art Gallery, Bath • Freud, Minton, Ryan: unholy trinity (until 19 September)
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John Eaves: 50 years (until 19 September) Bath Society of Artists 116th Annual Exhibition (2 October – 20 November) Bronwyn Williams-Ellis: Mythical Beasts Past & Present (29 November – 27 February 2022) Myths and Monsters (29 November – 27 February 2022)
Bristol Museum & Art Gallery • Reflections on the Bristol School (until 17 October) • Bristol Photo Festival (until 31 October) • Grayson’s Art Club (4 December – 8 May 2022 ) • Netsuke: Miniature Masterpieces from Japan (until 5 June 2022) Swindon Museum & Art Gallery Closed. See their ‘Art on Tour’ initiative
Art at Cheltenham Literature Festival This year’s Cheltenham Literature Festival (8 to 17 October) will see a return to more in-person events, with plenty on art, design and architecture. www. cheltenhamliteraturefestival.com/ Friday 8 October 4pm To See The Stars Again: Dante And The Visual Imagination Marking the 700th anniversary of Dante’s death, a celebration of the enduring power of his words and an exploration of his profound impact on other artists. Saturday 9 October 4.15pm Photography Now: Through The Contemporary Lens In the 21st century, what can photography do that is new? Saturday 9 October 6.30pm Across Oceans: British Caribbean Art
Sunday 10 October 6.30pm The Van Gogh Sisters Delving into previously unpublished personal correspondence, Willem-Jan Verlinden brings Vincent’s three sisters out from their brothers shadow. Sunday 10 October 9.15pm Street Art Boy: Keith Haring And The New York Scene A collaborator of artists including Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat as well as cultural icons David Bowie, Grace Jones and Vivienne Westwood, Haring’s iconic motifs revolutionised the worlds of pop culture and fine art. Wednesday 13 October 10am William Morris: Artist, Craftsman, Pioneer Accompanied by stunning imagery spanning painting, stained glass,
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wallpaper and textiles, curator Anna Mason explores Morris’ legacy. Wednesday 13 October 2pm Spirit Of Place: Art And The British Landscape A look at the countryside through the eyes of writers and artists such as Bede, the Gawain poet, Gainsborough, Austen, Turner, Constable, Paul Nash, Barbara Hepworth and Robert Macfarlane. Friday 15 October 1pm Goya: A Portrait Of The Artist Saturday 16 October 4.15pm The Mirror And The Palette: 500 Years Of Women’s Self Portraits
Sunday 17 October 4pm Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists? An exploration of how Linda Nochlin’s 1971 essay Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists? kick-started a revolution. Sunday 17 October 6pm Bright Stars: Great Artists Who Died Too Young Heavyweights Vincent van Gogh and Jean-Michel Basquiat have been mythologised by their early deaths. For others like Pauline Boty and Charlotte Salomon, a premature demise has meant being left out of the history books altogether.
Exhibition Review Tokyo: Art & Photography Running until 3 January 2022 at the Ashmolean, Oxford. Book tickets at www.ashmolean.org/tokyo#/ This exhibition, like its sporting Tokyo counterpart, arrives unavoidably a year late; while the succinct title might suggest a wholly-contemporary exhibition, it covers the period from the samurai era Edo to today’s sprawling, vibrant capital city. The scene is set by wood-block prints drawn from the Ashmolean’s impressive permanent collections of works by Hokusai, Hiroshige and other Japanese masters. Captions encourage us to notice not only distant Mount Fuji, but also bustling streets which foreshadow today’s modern metropolis. That these works still inspire Japan’s contemporary artists is evident, but we are also reminded of their impact on Manet, Van Gogh and western art. A ‘People’ section introduces us, through more wonderful woodcut 10
prints, to the city’s samurai and imperial rulers, Kabuki actors, geishas, courtesans and anonymous citydwellers. After Edo became Tokyo and Emperor Meiji embraced western influences, the city’s first sky-scraper (‘cloud surpassing pavilion’ in Japanese) was much photographed and drawn. Its collapse in the 1923 earthquake was a reminder of Tokyo’s perilous position on the junction of tectonic plates – an instability which may explain the lasting appeal of the work and methods of Hokusai and Hiroshige. The photographic and video content of the exhibition includes touching and challenging mini-dramas and documentary records (including of protests linked to the 1964 Olympics) and portraits of Tokyo residents and buildings few visitors encounter, from pink-haired models and inhabitants of cardboard houses to ‘love hotels’. Tokyo may be innovative and vibrant but, as a caption reminds us, life in a city famously short of space, where many
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work for long-standing hierarchical companies, can be stressful. A section on ‘Artistic Innovations’ includes the glorious 1835 Courtesan Usugumo, 1930s Creative Prints – one showing men in homburgs beneath a huge temple lantern – and, in tribute to Hokusai and Hiroshige, One Hundred Views of New Tokyo. While many artists’ names are unfamiliar, photographs of Yoko Ono during her period working in Japan appear beside a video, Oh Yoko, which includes familiar motifs associated with John Lennon and the Beatles. One wonders whether the artist – or indeed the Lennons – knew that Liverpool’s ‘Strawberry Field’ was home in the late 19th century to Japan’s first British-born consul and his Japanese collection-cum-museum.
challenge with an exhibition which should appeal to those who have visited or plan to go to Tokyo, admire Japanese woodcuts or enjoy contemporary art – or Cheltenham gallery-goers looking for an interesting post-lockdown visit to Oxford. In this reviewer’s opinion, Tokyo: Art & Photography merits both its press acclaim and your attention. Anne Strathie Anne visited Japan in 2016 while researching for her biography of Herbert Ponting; Friends’ President, PJ Crook, has painted in Japan, where her work is in the collection of and regularly exhibited at the Morohashi Museum of Modern Art.
Resonances between periods and exhibits make Tokyo: Art & Photography more than the sum of its parts, while a beautifully-produced catalogue is available to provide a lasting record and enlightening essays. Like British Olympians, the Ashmolean team has risen magnificently to their delayed
Holst Victorian House The first stage of the transformation of the Holst Birthplace Museum (4 Clarence Road) into Holst Victorian House will be launched on 10 September 2021.
of all work – telling the story of the house through 10 objects. Please enjoy the films on our new website www. holstvictorianhouse.org.uk and come and visit.
We have collaborated with Cheltenham film-makers, Evenlode, to create two films. The first – filmed in All Saints, the Town Hall and Pittville Park as well as the museum – sets the house in its historical (‘a house through time’) and geographical context. The second is a dramatised documentary with Julia Giles – the real-life maid
The stars of the films are our own curator, Laura Kinnear, and – playing Julia Giles – Emmeline Braefield. Emmeline also features in a new film A Woman’s Life by local playwright Carolyn S. Jones. Carolyn talks about this in one of our launch events. Here is the full programme All events are in the museum unless stated otherwise:
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Conversation Piece? A Double Holst Portrait Tuesday 7 September, 6.30pm Online talk by Adrian Barlow Wining & Dining Victorian Style Friday 10 September, 11am & 2pm A series of short talks by curator Laura Kinnear, food & wine expert Lits Philippou and archivist Rachel Roberts. Part of Heritage Open Days A Woman’s Life Saturday 11 September, 11am & 12pm BAFTA nominated writer Carolyn S Jones reflects on turning her play about Mrs Beeton and Clara Holst into a film A Victorian Cheese & Wine Tasting Saturday 11 September, 7pm, St Luke’s Church Hall A tasting of six classic wines with cheese Punch & Judy Sunday 12 September, 11am & 1pm (special Sunday opening) Lashings of sausages, slapstick, crocodiles, laughter and good oldfashioned family fun with Professor Collywobbles’ traditional Punch & Judy show! Afterwards stay and explore the museum at your leisure
Victorian Book Group Wednesdays 13 Oct, 10 Nov & 8 Dec, bookings only, 10–11.30 am Refreshments included See website for book details Knit Your Bit Tuesdays 5 Oct, 2 Nov & 7 Dec, bookings only, 2–4pm Join our Knitting Circle in the Victorian Kitchen Refreshments included Children’s Craft Drop in Clay Lanterns Tuesday 26 October, 10am, 11am, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm Book a slot in our cosy Learning Space to create your very own clay lantern with LED candle to take home. Staff and volunteers will be on hand to help Victorian Christmas Day Saturday 11 December 2021, 11–3pm Peppermint creams, plum pudding and handmade cards, try some traditional Victorian Christmas craft Suitable for all ages
Bake Back in Time Saturday 18 September, 10am & 2pm Join our resident cook in the Victorian kitchen to taste and find out more about culinary treats from the past. Part of Heritage Open Days Holst’s Birthday Concert Saturday 25 September, 7.30pm, St Andrew’s Church Hall The Oriel Singers perform pieces written and inspired by Holst to celebrate 147 years since his birth 12
Booking recommended for all events. www.holstvictorianhouse.org.uk / enquiries@holstvictorianhouse.org.uk Martin Renshaw (on behalf of the Trustees of the Holst Birthplace Trust)
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Court Barn Many of you will know Court Barn, the Museum of Craft and Design that opened in Chipping Campden in 2007, but I hope you will find time to visit again on the Friends’ outing on 21 September. The museum quickly established itself as an inspiring and creative venue, telling the powerful stories of C.R. Ashbee and the Guild of Handicraft’s move from London’s East End to the north Cotswolds and the many designer-makers who have thrived in the area since. It has also supported contemporary makers through its exhibition programme, its shop and bursary for potential art students from Chipping Campden School.
July 2021. It tells Galena glazed and slip-trailed ‘Tree of Life’ charger by the story of the earthenware Bernard Leach, 1924. growing interest in Chinese and Japanese ceramics at the turn of the 20th century, the impact of Bernard Leach with his firsthand experience of the Japanese pottery tradition, and the Leach Pottery’s continuing influence among contemporary makers, including Jack Doherty, John Jelfs, Kat Wheeler and Matt Foster.
Following its 10th anniversary, plans began for the ‘Refresh’ project. Funded partly by the HLF and partly by private donations, the project added new elements to the permanent displays, including the metalwork designed by Ashbee for the doorway to Magpie and Stump in Cheyne Walk, London, and stained glass by Charles Blakeman. New text panels and interactives were produced, including a map showing the significant buildings in the town. The work was completed by March 2020 – not the most opportune date – and the museum was forced to close its doors.
The exhibition includes 50 stunning pots, almost all from private collections. Thanks to our sponsors, Maak Contemporary Ceramics, we are able to show fifteen particularly important examples of work by Bernard Leach, Shoji Hamada, Janet Leach and others from the collection of the late Dr John P. Driscoll, a highly respected American curator, art historian and gallery owner who ran the Babcock Driscoll Galleries in Manhattan. Privately, however, he was a great enthusiast for British studio pottery. This ceramic tradition was largely unrecognised and unappreciated in the USA when he first became interested, but visits to the UK to meet potters enabled him to acquire knowledge and develop his remarkable personal collection.
Since then, its staff, trustees and volunteers have ensured that the museum has been open as much as possible and that visitors have been made comfortable and welcome by all the additional measures put in place. In preparation was an exhibition to celebrate the centenary of the Leach Pottery for 2020 and Pioneers: 101 years of the Leach Pottery finally opened on 10
I shall be taking part on the trip to Sezincote and Chipping Campden and am happy to guide visitors to Court Barn. Mary Greensted, trustee, Guild of Handicraft Trust
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PocketSights: Cheltenham in Antarctica Walk Following on from the excellent talk in June by Anne Strathie about Herbert Ponting’s life and his photographs of Antarctica, we were invited to try out the self-guided walking tour called ‘Cheltenham in Antarctica’. It is available on the free PocketSights app that you can download to a smartphone or tablet. It is also part of David Elder’s book Cheltenham Heritage Walks which we already own but had not followed up as a whole walk. If you live in Cheltenham, you are probably already familiar with the story of Scott’s last expedition to Antarctica and Edward Wilson’s part in it, and may also know the landmarks of his hometown well enough to feel there can be no surprises. We took both book and app with us on a warm summer’s day in early July. The Wilson is the starting point, and the 3-mile walk takes about 2 hours. We decided to park at the shops beside Waitrose where a 3-hour stay for free is allowed. That added half a mile to each end of the walk. You can also choose to view the app’s 15 points of interest at home without doing the walk. Switching on the app outside the Wilson, we were surprised to find it insisting we had reached the end of the walk when pressing item 1. From the book, we could tell stop 2 should be at the Edward Wilson statue on the Promenade. However, looking at the app, the numbers at the various stops were going the opposite way. We decided to follow the app and do it backwards. The map is easy to follow, and we went first to Cheltenham Minster (St Mary’s), then worked our way along the High Street out to London Road. Lloyd’s Bank 14
is on the site of the old Assembly Rooms where talks about the expeditions were once given. We didn’t know that. We had to ignore the directions at the foot of each page on the app to proceed in the order of the numbers. You can skip a stop if you prefer not to do some of the little detours. There is plenty of information to read about each stop, available to see even if you don’t walk to that point. Having the book in hand, we could see that the app contains much of the same information. However, the book does not include the many splendid photos of each site that the app shows you – apart from the Fortitude Window in the Chapel at Cheltenham College, in memory of Edward Wilson. Usually, there is no access for the public to the Chapel, but you can book to go on a visit to it and the college during the Heritage Open Days in the autumn. Knowing Cheltenham, we felt that by going ‘backwards’ we were actually going to see the more famous parts of the town last. There were surprises – we paid more attention to particular buildings that we had no time for when driving through town or simply ignored through familiarity. We learned a lot more about Cheltenham’s connections with Antarctica. Walking to every point using the app was an enjoyable way to notice more about our own town and we would certainly use it to go on walks in places we don’t know. You are completely in charge of which way to walk and how much of the walk you want to do in one go – it is easy to pick it up again to do more on another day. We arrived at Imperial Gardens in time for a welcome drink and rest at
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the Garden Bar. The statue of Edward Wilson was the last point on our personal tour, which seemed fitting. Back at The Wilson we noticed that starting from outside the library might help the app distinguish your location because suddenly all the numbers were going in the right order, but we weren’t going to start again! Sue and Patrick Hodgkinson It’s wonderful to get some feedback from people using the interactive walk that I created on PocketSights from David Elder’s excellent book. I enjoyed reading about Sue’s experiences and thought it might be helpful to respond to some of the challenges that she experienced. I was particularly keen to solve the mystery of the back-to-front tour so headed hot-foot to The Wilson to see if I could recreate the problem. Having two sight markers at The Wilson, for the beginning and end of the walk, obviously causes the app to get slightly confused and I suspect the level of confusion will depend a bit on your phone too. When I started the app standing on the pavement in front of The Wilson, the walk started the correct way. But then, when I tried it again, I had the same problem as Sue.
After a bit of experimentation, I found the best way to get it to open at the beginning rather than the end is to stand near the upright Information Board to the side of The Wilson entrance. You can also open the tour in Free Roam mode if you’d like to start at a point other than The Wilson. Audio is also available, albeit in a rather robotic American voice, but could still be useful if you prefer not to be peering at your phone the whole time. There are two audio options: ‘Text to Speech’ reads out all the information for each individual sight as you get to that sight, while ‘Voice Navigation’, as it suggests, provides verbal directions to each sight. You can switch on one or both of these options by clicking on ‘Settings’ in the top left-hand corner of the screen and then toggling the audio options which are listed there. I do hope you enjoy trying out the walk – as Sue found, it really is easy to use. And you may be interested in a couple of other local walks I have put on PocketSights – ‘Pittville History Works Architectural Walking Tour’ and ‘Holst’s Cheltenham’. Andrea Creedon
New Members We welcome the following members who have recently joined the Friends: Marjorie Evans Vanessa Graham & David Haggie Julie Rigg
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Where to Visit: Osborne House The Isle of Wight is famously the same size as Barbados and, for four days when I visited the former in July for a special birthday celebration, it shared the same climate. Its ‘crowning’ glory is Osborne House, Victoria and Albert’s Italianate holiday home. Appropriately, the first room we entered was devoted to birthdays. They celebrated virtually every birthday together there and, whilst being woken by a military band and entertained by children performing amateur dramatics and concerts may not be to everyone’s taste, Victoria clearly loved it. The house is full of presents that they bought for each other, and their devotion is palpable. After Albert’s death in 1861, Victoria never visited there again on her birthday. Victoria died in her bedroom here on 22 January 1901 in the arms of – according to the room guide although this is disputed - her favourite relation, her grandson William. The same man, of course, would lead the Germans in the First World War as ‘Kaiser Bill’ a few short years later. The house visit ends with the magnificent Durbar Room designed by Bhai Ram Singh and John Lockwood Kipling, the father of Rudyard. Victoria was created Empress of India by Disraeli in 1876 but never managed to travel further east than Tuscany. The House has an extensive art collection including two paintings by Victoria herself. The subdued lighting makes it difficult to see some of them clearly but Christopher Lloyd’s book In Search of a Masterpiece highlights the mural of Hercules and Omphale by Anton von Gegenbauer in Prince Albert’s 16
bathroom, Virgin and Child by the Scottish painter William Dyce, Florinda by Franz Xaver Winterhalter and The Grandmother’s Birthday by Ferdinand Georg Waldmuller. There is also a theatrical connection. The Royal Naval College was established in the grounds in 1903. In 1909, George Archer-Shee, an Osborne cadet, was accused of stealing a fiveshilling postal order and his parents were asked to withdraw him from the navy. They appealed and the case went to court. He was finally vindicated to public jubilation but his family were financially ruined. Having lost his naval career, Archer-Shee enlisted in the Army in 1914 and was killed in Ypres in the first month of the war. Many of you will recognise the story from Terence Rattigan’s The Winslow Boy. On display as part of English Heritage’s project to remember black figures from history is a stunning portrait by Hannah Uzor of Sarah Forbes Bonetta, the daughter of an African ruler who became Victoria’s goddaughter. There is so much more to see in the house – including Victoria’s manuallyoperated lift – and the extensive gardens; Victoria’s bathing machine, Swiss Cottage, geometric terraces, walled garden and icehouse. Martin Renshaw
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Favourite Works of Art: Freda Derrick The Works On Paper collection at The Wilson includes a wide variety of works from the past 400 or so years. Some are sketches, studies and designs, from figure studies to finished works. The works have regularly entered the collection since the origins of the art gallery with the bequest of paintings and money by Baron de Ferrieres in 1898, and many other subsequent donations. The several thousand works arrived in a variety of ways – partly by judicious curators discovering or ferreting out interesting and relevant items, partly by gentle and persistent persuasion, and partly, and importantly, by donation. Regrettably there are very few images of the vast majority of these works.
she saw as in danger of being lost. She was part of a generation who became very much aware of the changing times and the real danger of losing historic activities, particularly rural crafts. A typical example of her concern is Country Craftsmen, a book she wrote and illustrated, which was published in its final form in 1845 and dedicated to The Kelmscott Fellowship.
One large group of works by Freda Derrick has intrigued me for some time. Freda Derrick was a painter, illustrator, and writer. Born in Cheltenham in 1892, she studied at Cheltenham School of Art. Her first commission on leaving art school was for an illustrated children’s book, titled The Ark Book. Cheltenham has the illustrations for this work.
Other books on the rural scene she produced included: Gothic Wanderings in Somerset; Tales told in Church Stones; and A Traveller Among The Farms. After her death in 1969, her family donated a large collection of her drawings and illustrations, and in 2006 an important exhibition of her work was staged at Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum titled Alphabet Animals, Illustrations By Freda Derrick. In fact, the Derrick collection contains much more than the exhibition title suggests.
She subsequently produced another book for children – A Day in Animal Town. Although she did not exhibit single paintings very often, she was a prolific illustrator and writer – increasingly recording, in image and word, rural crafts and agriculture which
David Addison was Director of Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum in the 1970s. www.addisonart.co.uk
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Reviews Immerse Yourself in Bath (26/04/21) When I looked forward to my virtual tour of Bath, I hadn’t anticipated the fun of a balloon flight. But this, and more, was one of the ways in which Maeve Hamilton Hercod brought her talk to life. First, we arrived ‘by coach’ at the Holburne Museum. As in its original form as the Sydney Hotel, the museum caters to the needs of visitors’ creature comforts, as well as the desire to be entertained. Whereas in the past this would have been through music and fireworks, today it is the job of the many objects collected by Sir William Holburne during his travels in Europe in the 19th century, as well as works by Gainsborough. Then came our aerial trip across the city to the upper town. This bird’s-eye view enabled us to see several crescents and how the reputation of the Royal Crescent is justified by its position. Its 30 houses, fronted by a large expanse of lawn, gaze out above the town and enjoy clean air, denied in previous centuries to the streets in the bowl below. In case we had fantasies of owning one of the 5 remaining houses in private ownership, a recent sale price of £6.5 million brought us down to earth, back to the main sights of the Georgian era. A poignant detour took us to Catherine Place where gardens commemorate the three bombing raids inflicted on Bath, coincidentally over the last weekend in April, in 1942. Then onto the Circus; interestingly, its curve owes its dimensions to Stonehenge. The architect, John Wood, dreamt of creating another Rome and this is reflected in the classic facades of 18
the 33 houses built at the time of Bath’s increasing popularity. This is illustrated in the novels of Jane Austen. Readers will be familiar with our next call, the Assembly Rooms, which was the scene of so many hopes and dreams. Most striking for me were the fabulous chandeliers. Replacing the candles provided the opportunity for refreshment: tea for the ladies and alcohol for the men!
From Milson Street, little changed in 200 years, we looked up to Beechen Cliff whose 69 quarries provided the stone from which most of Bath was built. Then on to the Guildhall and Bath Abbey. Built in 1499, this succeeds much earlier places of settlement, chosen for the hot springs which now provide underfloor heating for the abbey. This site was home to the Celts, a Roman temple, a Saxon priory and a Norman cathedral. It was also the place of King Edgar’s coronation in 973 AD. Although she only lived her for 5 years (1801–6), Jane Austen is among the names who ensure Bath’s ongoing popularity. Modern TV (Bridgerton) and cinema (Les Misérables) can’t get enough of this Georgian gem. Jackie Anderson
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Art and Freedom (17/05/21) This was the third talk by art historian and lecturer Nick Nelson to the Friends and the theme was timely, coinciding with a relaxation of lockdown.
‘bodyguard’ (a police officer at the Royal Academy to keep the crowds moving along) because of the intense interest it generated – depicts the wife of a Highland Jacobite soldier delivering an order securing his release.
Nick linked back to his talk on Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele with an image of the Secession Building in Vienna with its (translated) inscription ‘To every age its art, to every art its freedom’. Nick singled out Eugene Delacroix as the painter who, for him, most represents freedom. We could only imagine the scale of Death of Sardanapalus (4 x 5 metres). Delacroix painted himself into his famous Liberty Leading the People and proudly proclaimed that ‘if I haven’t fought for my country, at least I’ll paint for her’. The Frick Museum on 5th Avenue in New York slightly incongruously houses an exquisite painting by Giovanni Bellini of St. Francis in Ecstasy. St Francis turns his back on the city and material desires to find freedom in nature and asceticism. Impressionists (exemplified by Claude Monet’s Impression, Sunrise) sought artistic freedom by breaking from tradition. Picasso studied African art and developed a new way of representing human figures as in, for example, Les Demoiselles D’Avignon. Jacques-Louis David started painting The Intervention of the Sabine Women while imprisoned in the Luxembourg Palace. The painting was conceived to honour his wife who – despite being estranged for political reasons – arranged his release. John Everett Millais’ The Order of Release – the first artwork to warrant a
Vincent Van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Cypresses was painted when he was able to briefly leave the precincts of the asylum. Kasper David Friedrich’s Wanderer above the Sea of Fog is a Romantic evocation of the vastness and majesty of nature. Four fifths of his The Monk by the Sea is taken up by the sky. Nick quoted novelist and art historian Anita Brookner’s definition of a Romantic as someone who would rather travel hopefully than arrive. Wassily Kandinsky pioneered abstract art and was inspired by the dissonant atonal music of Arnold Schoenberg and others. Jackson Pollock’s free form, improvisation style had parallels with jazz musicians such as Lester Young and Dizzy Gillespie. Overall, huge thanks are due to Nick for the opportunity to view or review a wide range of great art with a knowledgeable, insightful and entertaining guide. Martin Renshaw
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Herbert Ponting: Scott’s Antarctic Photographer and Pioneer Filmmaker (21/06/21) Anne Strathie’s enthusiasm for stories around the exploration of Antarctica have resulted in a third publication, this time focusing on Herbert Ponting who travelled with Scott on the Terra Nova and was the first professional photographer to visit Antarctica. As Anne pointed out, Ponting’s life (18701935) set her a challenge, but she covered the ground with confident thoroughness.
Antarctica were in demand, whilst the death of Scott and his colleagues meant that Ponting’s photos became their memorial as well as an authentic record. His photography book The Great White South was a bestseller and was converted into an equally-successful film. Ponting became something of a celebrity and man about town, but his career was scuppered by the Wall Street Crash in 1929. His final years were marred by overwork and overspend but he continued trying to develop new techniques. Anne described Ponting as a precursor of more contemporary ‘talking head’ figures such as David Attenborough, concluding a beautifully illustrated and wide-ranging talk that was much enjoyed and provided a fascinating introduction to her most recent book. Mary Greensted
Ponting was born in Salisbury. His father, an ambitious and successful banker, relocated the family regularly, ending up in Liverpool. It was there that Ponting’s interest in photography developed, encouraged by the example of local man, Francis Frith, and the growing popularity of stereoview images. Having accepted that his son wouldn’t settle to banking, his father bought him a fruit farm in California where Ponting enjoyed the physical outdoor life. He married and had two children, but his main passion was photography. He was soon earning enough to become professional, travelling for commissions to Japan, India and Europe. He signed up for Scott’s expedition in 1909 and found a kindred spirit in Edward Wilson. Anne commented that it was sometimes Wilson’s watercolours and sometimes Ponting’s photos which best captured a scene. His images from 20
The Battle of Tewkesbury (05/07/21) Steve Goodchild explained the political scene in England, France and Burgundy. The two kings: Edward IV, tall, handsome and competent, and Louise IX, ‘the universal spider’, plus the Duke of Burgundy ‘the Rash’, married to Edward’s sister Margaret. On 22 July 1470, Louis summoned Margaret of Anjou to meet the Earl of Warwick, who had quarrelled with Edward and fled to Louis. The pact was to invade England and, when it was conquered, make war on Burgundy. Their invasion was successful, so Edward fled to Burgundy. However, in April 1471, Edward returned to raise troops, and Clarence betrayed Warwick. Edward marched on London. Warwick was forced into battle on 14 April at Barnet. He and his brother
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were killed. By unlucky coincidence, Queen Margaret landed in the West Country on the same day. Gloucester refused to open its gates to Margaret but, as she passed by, the Constable made a sortie and seized the Bristol guns, purloined by Margaret. She moved to Tewkesbury and Edward knew she was stuck, unable to cross two rivers and reach Jasper Tudor in Wales. Edward took precautions and placed 200 horses in Tewkesbury Deer Park. Somerset made a feint behind the Duke of Gloucester, but it led him into the path of the 200 horsemen. Lancastrians retreated, many being slain in the panic. Edward, Prince of Wales was killed ‘incontinently’ in the field. The Dukes of Gloucester and Norfolk were the judges who condemned many Lancastrian nobles to death, including Somerset. Edward’s triumphant return to London saw him place Margaret in a cart at the back of the wagon train. An enjoyable talk. Julph Miers Highnam Court and The Holy Innocents Church, Gloucester (22/07/21) No one travelling along the A40 eastwards out of Gloucester can fail to be attracted by the elegant spire of Highnam Church, some 200ft high. Our group arrived in splendid sunshine to visit first Highnam Court, and then the church. We were greeted by Mr Roger Head, who bought the estate in 1994, and has been engaged ever since in restoring both the house and the gardens to the
glorious state that we can now see. Built in 1658 after the original house had been seriously damaged in the Civil War, it was eventually bought in 1838 by Thomas Gambier-Parry, an accomplished artist, musician, art collector and philanthropist, who lovingly devoted his talents to the house and began to lay out the gardens. Roger gave us a tour of the ground floor, where we were able to see the magnificent furniture, fireplaces, clocks and paintings that have been added over the years. We were then introduced to the gardens, after which we were able to explore them at our own leisure. Every area has its own delights – lakes, bridges, wooden sculptures, rose gardens, woods.
Following lunch in the Orangery, we transferred to the church, built by the same Thomas in 1849 to commemorate his late wife, Isabella. The dedication to the Holy Innocents is a reference to the three of their six children who died in infancy. Their youngest child was Hubert Parry, the celebrated composer. Described by Betjeman as ‘the most complete Victorian church in the country’, it again can only be appreciated by a visit. Reflecting his AngloCatholicism and belief in the Gothic revival, it is a veritable masterpiece. Built in the Decorated style, its wall paintings were both designed and painted by G-P himself. The iron screen, the intricately carved stone reredos, the floor tiles, the glass, everything was completed to the highest standard. It’s simply a gem. Robert Ingram
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Contacts President PJ Crook Chair Adrian Barlow (01242 515192) chair@ friendsofthewilson.org.uk Secretary John Beard (01242 514059) secretary@ friendsofthewilson.org.uk Treasurer Liz Giles (01242 224773) treasurer@ friendsofthewilson.org.uk Membership Secretary Martin Renshaw (07748 901194) membership@friendsofthewilson.org.uk
Marketing Vanessa Graham vanessacgraham@gmail.com Newsletter Editor Alex Boulton editor@friendsofthewilson.org.uk Cover photo: Taken by Anne Bartlett at Highnam Court Deadline for the next issue: 25 November 2021 Please send everything to editor@ friendsofthewilson.org.uk
Cheltenham Trust Liaison Jaki Davis (07747 795709) jaki. meekingsdavis@hotmail.com Talks Organiser Sue Pearce (01242 522467) sp68len@ gmail.com Collections David Addison (01242 238905) davidaddison10@btinternet.com Volunteer Liaison Robert Rimell (07858 007852) rimell@ me.com Newsletter Mailing Sue Reeves (01242 675497) sue. reeves39@gmail.com Events Bookings Alison Pascoe (01242 519413) Martha Alleguen (01242 526601) events@friendsofthewilson.org.uk
The Wilson, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum Clarence Street, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL50 3JT 01242 237431 artgallery@cheltenhamtrust.org.uk www.cheltenhammuseum.org.uk Friends of The Wilson, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum Registered charity number 289514 www.friendsofthewilson.org.uk queries@friendsofthewilson.org.uk editor@friendsofthewilson.org.uk
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