The 2025 Excusions list!

 

FRIENDS OF LEAMINGTON SPA ART GALLERY & MUSEUM

EXCURSIONS 2025

 

All excursions leave from Newbold Comyn with a pick up in Newbold Terrace, opposite the Spa Centre, about 5 minutes later.  Please bring relevant membership cards as we are required to show them.  Without them entrance fees will be charged.

Please familiarise yourself with the Information Sheet on the FLAG website before submitting your booking.

Phone numbers for day of excursion are:       Judy 07580388659      Lyn 07795085756

 

We are only giving details of our day and a brief introduction to the venues as they all have their own websites for you to consult to get more detailed information.

 

 

BOUGHTON HOUSE, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE

WEDNESDAY 9 APRIL – DEPART 8.45am

 

Travelling straight to Boughton House where there will be coffee/tea and biscuits (included in the price) followed by a tour of several of the rooms on the ground and first floors.  We will then have  lunch (soup and variety of sandwiches inc. fish & vegetarian, also included in the price).  Free time then to have a leisurely wander in the gardens.  An afternoon drink/cake will be available to purchase at 3.15pm if required.

Boughton House contains pictures by El Greco, Van Dyck and Gainsborough among many others, as well as Sevres porcelain, Boulle furniture, Mortlake tapestries and 16^th century rugs from the Middle East.  In 1683 the 1^st Duke of Montagu inherited a Tudor house and extended it.  His son, the 2^nd Duke planted large parts of the garden.  The house is now owned by their descendant the Duke of Buccleuch.

 

Leaving at 4.15 pm.                                        Organiser – Judy Ross            01926 423033

 

 

AMERSHAM & CHENIES MANOR, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

TUESDAY 13 MAY – DEPART 8.30 am

 

Travelling straight to Amersham where there are several pubs and cafes to purchase coffee and lunch, or bring your own picnic.  A free morning to discover Amersham which has 150 listed buildings, you may have seen it featured in Midsomer Murders, Poirot or Four Weddings and a Funeral!  St Mary's church was built in the 13^th Century and extended in the 14^th & 15^th Centuries.  It was restored in the 1890's.  There are unusual “body stones” graves in the churchyard.  The Amersham Society has a useful old town map on their website at www.amershamsociety.com.

We leave Amersham at 1.45pm to travel to Chenies Manor for a private tour of part of the house.  Old Chenies Manor House was built in 1460 by Sir John Cheyne and, for a time, became the seat of the Dukes of Bedford.  The house still retains its Tudor architecture.  Free time then to walk around the award winning garden and take tea/coffee and cake which is included in the price.

 

Leaving at 4.15 pm.                                        Organiser – Judy Ross            01926 423033

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SHREWSBURY & WOLLERTON OLD HALL GARDEN, SHROPSHIRE

WEDNESDAY 25 JUNE – DEPART 8.30am

 

Travelling straight to Shrewsbury for the morning to explore the town at your own pace. Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery, is in the centre of the town, housed behind a grand Georgian facade and is free to visit.  The Visitor Information Centre can be found there.  Shrewsbury is home to 660 listed buildings and is most famous for being the birthplace of Charles Darwin.  Shrewsbury Cathedral is central and is famous for its stained glass by the acclaimed artist Margaret Rope (1882-1953).  There are also other churches within walking distance, Shrewsbury Abbey is a bit further out of the centre.  There are plenty of options for purchasing coffee and lunch or bring your own picnic.

We leave Shrewsbury at 1.45pm for the short journey to Wollerton Old Hall Garden.  This award winning garden has recently featured on Monty Don's British Gardens and is 'A world class example of an English Garden'.  Set in 3 acres surrounding a 16^th century Hall,  we will have exclusive enjoyment of these gardens for the afternoon with tea/cake included in the price.

 

Leaving at 5.00pm.                                         Organiser -  Lyn Buckle          01926 339499

 

ARLEY HALL & GARDENS, CHESHIRE

MONDAY 14 JULY – DEPART 8.30am

 

We shall have a comfort break en route and arrive, hopefully, between 11.00 – 11.30am.  Arley Hall is a Grade II* listed building with adjacent chapel.  We are visiting on one of the few days a month  the Hall is open, guided tours are not available, visitors self guide round the two floors of the hall, knowledgeable volunteers are available for information.  The gardens are amongst the finest in Europe, having been created over the last 270 years by successive generations of the same family.  There are 8 acres of formal gardens and 7 acres of Woodland Garden.  The Double Herbaceous Border is the best-known feature of the gardens and is thought to be the first planted in England.  Lunch can be purchased at The Gardener's Kitchen Cafe or there are picnic benches in the Play Zone.

Leaving at 5.00pm                                          Organiser – Lyn Buckle          01926 339499

 

ROYAL HOLLOWAY COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON EGHAM, SURREY

THURSDAY 7 AUGUST – DEPART 8.00 am

 

An early start for this excursion but we will have a coffee stop at Oxford Services for about 30 minutes then straight on to Royal Holloway College.  This is a private tour starting at 11.00am with a tour of the Founders Building, including the quads, the Chapel, Lecture Theatre, Reading Room and other rooms subject to availability.  At 12.30pm we will have lunch (a variety of sandwiches including meat, fish & vegetarian, fruit platter and tea/coffee/mineral water) which will be served in the Picture Gallery followed by a talk about the pictures at 1.15pm.  There will then be free time to look at the paintings.  Tea/coffee and cake will be served again in the Picture Gallery at 3.00pm.  Lunch and tea are both included in the price.

Thomas and Jane Holloway were a wealthy couple who decided to put their money into building a college for women's education.  Sadly, neither lived to see the opening of the building in 1886 by Queen Victoria.  Thomas went on a spending spree for the University and bought paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings and watercolours including works by William Powell Frith, John Everett Millais and Edward Burne-Jones.  Recent additions to the collection include works by Augustus John and Graham Sutherland.

 

Leaving at 3.45pm                                          Organiser – Judy Ross            01926 423033

2025 Spring Talks

All talks are held at the Dormer Conference Centre beside St Peter’s Church in Dormer Place.
Parking is available on the street in Dormer Place or in St Peter’s multi-storey car park.

Wednesday 19th February 2.30pm
Simon Gulliver – Chinese Wilson
Tuesday 18th March 7.30pm
Aidan McRae Thompson – Stained Glass in Leamington and Beyond
Tuesday 15th April 7.00pm AGM followed by
Tim Robottom – Introduction to Street Art

Summer trips are now being planned which we hope members will support. We try to seek
out venues that are interesting but a bit more unusual. Any ideas for future trips are always
welcome, as are ideas for future speakers for our meetings.

Your subscriptions help look after and enlarge the collections.You will already know that, regrettably, we have taken the decision to raise the annual subscription from £12 to £15. 

 

We are faced with increased overheads and declining membership so this is necessary to maintain a reasonable level of income to run the society and be able to support various projects for the AG&M. It does, in fact, take us in line with most other local societies. 

 

As well as continuing your membership, another way you can help is by encouraging your friends and neighbours to join FLAG: new members are always very welcome.

Apollo Pythian and other news.

Thanks to generous support from FLAG we have framed and mounted two recent acquisitions to the collection. Apollo Pythion (1991) by Joe Tilson (1928-2023) is currently on display in the main gallery and Thistledown (2018) by Amy Sharrocks (b.1969) will be exhibited this summer in the temporary exhibition, A Different View.

Apollo Pythian

 

We were delighted to be successful in our application for funding from the Art Fund to acquire the Piper painting of Wolfhamcote Church which is supported with a pledge from FLAG and has been on
display in the gallery for some time. We are now awaiting news from the V&A Purchase Grant Fund before we are able to confirm the painting can be become part of the collection.

 
We have been researching the Gainsborough portrait of local landowner and politician Henry Christopher Wise which is currently on display in the main gallery. The painting is on loan while we try to secure funding to acquire it for the collection. The portrait had been missing since 1949 and was only recently rediscovered. Last month we were able to look more closely at the paint surface with conservator Stewart Meese, who used UV light to reveal areas of over-painting and restoration, which had initially caused concern.

We also received confirmation from the international authority on Gainsborough, Hugh Belsey, that the painting has been authenticated as a work by the great master. Belsey can be seen investigating a Gainsborough portrait from a similar stage in the artist’s career on Fake or Fortune Series 3, episode 4 – available on BBC iPlayer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum, The Royal Pump Rooms, Parade, Leamington Spa, CV32 4AA.

Open Tuesday to Sunday: 10am to 4pm (closed Mondays) Parking in the town, and 10 minutes walk from the railway station.

 

Friday Focus Extra, Friday 31st January, 1pm,

Join curators Abigael Flack and Annabel Rainbow for an introduction the Unravelling
History exhibition.

Meet the Artists

Saturday 1st February, – 11am-3pm
Drop in to the Temporary Exhibition Gallery to meet some of the artists featured in 

Unravelling History and find out about their work.

Meet the Artist

Saturday 22nd March, time 11 to 3pm

Drop in to the Temporary Exhibition Gallery to meet lead artist and co-curator 

Annabel Rainbow for demonstrations of her work.

Friday Focus Extra

Friday 4th April, 1pm

Join curator Abigael Flack for a talk about the history of stitched samplers, followed by 

an opportunity to hear from Unravelling History artist Annabel Rainbow 

about how she incorporated this history into her modern work.

Meet the Artist – Windrush Series

Saturday 12th April, 2pm-4pm

In this special drop-in session, join artist Annabel Rainbow and some of the people 

involved in her series of Windrush portraits as they talk about the process and themes behind the work.

Meet the Artist

Saturday 10th May, time 11-3pm

For the final weekend of Unravelling History, drop in to the Temporary Exhibition Gallery 

to meet artist and co-curator Annabel Rainbow.

Apollo Pythian by Joe Tilson

 

After financing the conservation, due to water damage, and reframing of Apollo Pythian by Joe Tilson FLAG are delighted to see it is now displayed in the main gallery.

 

Joe Tilson (1928-2023)

Apollo Pythion, 1991

 

Etching with corborundum on wove paper presented by The Art Fund, 2015

 

Tilson is known for his paintings, prints and constructions and was one of the founding figures of British Pop Art in the 1960's. Later in his career he began to spend more time in Italy and the subject matter of his work changed to reflect this shift. Subjects from Roman and Greek mythology have been a long-standing theme in art. His works can be found in large numbers of collections around the world, including Tate and Museum of Modern Art, New York.

 

 

 

Unravelling History - coming soon to the gallery

 

A new textile exhibition will be coming to Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum, from 31^st January to 11^th May 2025. Six distinguished artists, Laura Kemshall, Linda Kemshall, Daniel Lismore, Jennie Moncur, Annabel Rainbow, and Stephanie Redfern, have drawn inspiration from the LSAG&M's collections to create new and thought-provoking textile art.

It's been co-curated by Annabel Rainbow and the gallery.

                                                                Annabel Rainbow

What’s it About.

The exhibition will draw from objects in Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum’s collections, many of which have not been on public display before. As well as textiles, the artists have taken inspiration from objects including household items, paintings, books and ceramics, giving rise to a diverse range of contemporary textile pieces in dialogue with history. The exhibition will feature Daniel Lismore’s striking textile sculptures; bold tapestries from Jennie Moncur; innovative quilt designs by Laura Kemshall, Linda Kemshall and Annabel Rainbow, including a series of portraits of local Windrush elders; and unique combinations of textiles and ceramics from Stephanie Redfern.

Visitors will have the chance to reflect on the ways textiles can tell stories, connecting social history with personal narratives, and highlighting the history and ongoing relevance of textile art as a medium of creative expression.

We hope this exhibition will offer insight into the evolution of textile art and how it continues to engage and inspire.

                                                                Stephanie Redfern

 

Event Details:

• Dates: 31^st January – 11^th May 2025
• Meet The Artists Day – 1^st February 2025
• Talk on Samplers – 4^th April 2025 (1pm to 1.30 pm in the gallery)
• Location: Leamington Spa Art Gallery and Museum, Royal Pump Rooms, Parade, Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, CV32 4AA
• Featured Artists: Daniel Lismore, Laura Kemshall, Linda Kemshall, Jennie Moncur, Annabel Rainbow, and Stephanie Redfern. 

                                                                          Jennie Moncur

Lady Godiva shows us around Coventry!

 

 

Following a talk to both groups the Friends and the Leamington Society were invited by the Coventry Society to take a guided walk round the centre of Coventry.  In lovely sunshine we were welcomed to Coventry by Lady Godiva.  We were taken through the ruins of the old Cathedral and into the splendid Guild Hall.  We then walked round the central area where many interesting places, ancient and modern were pointed out to us by our excellent guide.  Finishing in the Undercrofts at the Priory Visitor Centre the tour was enjoyed by all.

Our visit to Ditchley Park

 

 

 

Flag members had a special visit this week to Ditchley Park, one of the United Kingdom’s finest houses with a rich history from Queen Elizabeth I to a secret base used by Churchill in the early years of World War II.  It was bought by Ronnie and Nancy Tree in 1933 who transformed it into one of the most beautiful and fashionable houses in the country.  It is now owned by the Ditchley Foundation with 3550 acres managed by the HDH Wills Charitable Trust.  

 

The private tour of the house hearing the history and seeing the beautiful rooms and paintings was enjoyed by all.

The FLAG 2024/25 Winter Programme

 

Exciting Day Trip to Henley on Thames and Ewelme!

Join us for an enchanting day out on Thursday, July 25th, exploring the picturesque towns of Henley on Thames and Ewelme. 

We have places available on an arranged trip to Henley on Thames and Ewelme on Thursday 25 July by coach, leaving Newbold Comyn at 8.30am with a further pick up opposite the Spa Centre.  The cost is £43 per person.

 Travelling straight to Henley on Thames and the River & Rowing Museum.  This is a fascinating museum housed in an award-winning building in a beautiful riverside setting.  It covers stories of the river, the town of Henley, the international sport of rowing and much more.  Of particular interest is the recently opened Piper Gallery exploring the life and career of John Piper, one of the most significant British artists of the 20^th century whose home was on the edge of Henley.  Admission to the museum is included in the cost of this trip.  There is a cafe to purchase coffee and lunch or stroll the short distance into the town to explore.  The Town Hall is a Grade II listed building,  the iconic Henley Bridge is a masterpiece of Georgian architecture spanning the Thames and St. Mary's Church has stood the test of time since the 13^th century.  There are also plenty of seats to sit beside the river and enjoy a picnic.

 Leaving at 1.45pm we travel the short distance to the pretty village of Ewelme.  We will be met by the village archivist at the historic church of St. Mary the Virgin where we will be told about the associations with the poet Geoffrey Chaucer and the Ewelme Trust which was set up in 1437 and still exists today.  We will also see the Almshouses and the village school which is the oldest school building in the country in use as a Church State Primary School.  We then return through the village to the Watercress Beds Nature Reserve where watercress was grown in specially-built beds fed by Ewelme Brook which runs through the village.  There we will have tea and cake (included in the price) and hear the history of this site.  We leave at 5.00pm.

 Non-members are very welcome to join us, please contact the Secretary on:

 friendsofleamingtonartgallery@hotmail.co.uk  for further details and booking forms.

 

Could you help support the gallery?

 Join FLAG and Support the Gallery!

Would you consider becoming a member of FLAG to help support the gallery? Your membership fees help to provide additional funds for conservation, purchasing new objects, and improving access to the  collections. We also sponsor the Visitors' Choice prize at the Open exhibition, which you may have visited.

Currently, we're giving extra funds to support the Arts Society volunteers with the long-term storage of a delicate collection of fans made from ivory, wood, paper, and silk. Since 2005, we have been providing annual funding to the Arts Society to aid their important work.

Most of the fans are Georgian or Victorian and are made of ivory or wood with delicate paper and silk. Currently they are stored folded up so every time they are looked at and opened, damage and wear is caused – especially as creases in fabric create a point of weakness.

The ideal way to store the fans is flat in their open position which avoids additional stress to the fabric and allows them to be admired with minimal handling. FLAG funding will provide custom sloped support created from acid-free card and new boxes to accommodate them in the open position.

FLAG are very pleased to be able to support this project and look forward to seeing the fans safely stored for the future.

Membership costs just £12 per year. You can download a membership form from our website or pick up an application leaflet from the foyer at the Pump Rooms.

As a FLAG member, you'll enjoy numerous benefits, including interesting outings, a range of talks and study days, and free entry to gallery events.

Payments can be made by cheque or bank transfer. For more details, please contact the Secretary at: friendsofleamingtonartgallery@hotmail.co.uk.

Thank you for your support!

 

Planning an exhibition at the gallery

This is a shared posting from Substack from Through Our Hands, who are having an exhibition at the art gallery from Jan to May 2025. There will be 6 textile artists creating new works alongside existing pieces inspired by the gallery's collections.

Above is another photo that Daniel Lismore has shared with us. He will be building a site specific piece in the gallery during December whilst he’s visiting Leamington. I’m sure being so last minute is a little unnerving for the gallery staff organizing the hanging etc but I’m certain it will be fine and there’s not really a better way of dealing with such amazing works!

In other news, the exhibition title has been finalized:

Unravelling History. Unpicking The Collections and Reworking Textile Traditions.

I must admit, we spent a considerable amount of time deliberating over it, wanting it to not only capture the essence of the artwork but also highlight its connection to the gallery’s collections. The tag line bit above is courtesy of Laura Kemshall who is always a whizz at such things! Certainly, all the new work being produced is done as a direct response to the pieces from the collections in the gallery or with commonalitites of subject matter or technique.

In the exhibition, the combination of new and old works will demonstrate how enduring themes have consistently resonated with textile artists and makers throughout history. These include visual inspirations like flowers and decorative techniques, as well as personal narratives and broader political themes such as protest and community building.

The exhibition will also showcase the gallery’s textile collection, featuring rarely-seen artifacts like Caribbean quilts, paintings, botanical books, toys, and fossils. It will also introduce audiences to donations from Amy Mary Spenlove Brown ( who donated a series of her own watercolours, as well as wide range of domestic items including a parasol, boot hooks and embroidery samplers) and Miss Cox, emphasizing the sense of heritage and value that family heirlooms carry.

1 of the 3 Caribbean quilts in the LSAG collection.

Miss Cox

There’s lots to think about when putting together an exhibition from initially discussing an idea with curators, and then completing formal exhibition proposal forms, explaining to interested parties how the exhibition would work and be of value to the community and be accessible to a wide range of audiences, not just the target audience. Practical planning has to be done once the agreement to proceed has been given, and fellow artists invited to take part, meetings arranged, archives and stores visited to search for inspirational artefacts, new work planned and made, marketing thought about - logos, colours (we’ve chosen Eating Room Red - a deep red - and Dimity - cream), catalogue layouts, delivery of pieces, workshops, talks, QR codes, hanging, even the lettering on the walls has to be carefully considered - eg did you know that we see best with an 80% contrast? 

Lots more to tell so do come back and find out more as the planning continues.