Back to school!
The days are now getting noticably shorter and the nights are cooler, and as children return to school this week, the morning commute is doubtless going to get longer! The highly successful programme of Victorian-themed family and adult events at Bantock House Museum and Wolverhampton Art Gallery have drawn to a close over the past weekend, but of course the permanent exhibitions and rooms are still open (and free) for your enjoyment.
Bantock House Museum interior
If you are interested in the history of Wolverhampton, a number of attractions across the city will be opening their doors as part of the national Heritage Open Days event that will be running from Thursday to Sunday, 10 – 13 September. This fantastic opportunity to explore historical buildings in Wolverhampton that are normally ‘out of bounds’ will include free tours, events and exhibitions all aimed at encouraging people to learn something new about Wolverhampton. For more information click.
Victorian Double Action
There was a good turn-out for Keith Oran’s gallery talk on The Highland Laddie’s Return last week – it was standing room only for a couple of us. Keith donned his Scottish kilt for the occasion, but we were all too polite to ask him the obvious question about what he was wearing underneath!
On Saturday 22nd August there will be another gallery talk at Wolverhampton Art Gallery in which Keith will be talking about a locally made double action revolver from the gallery’s collection. For the experts amongst you, that would be the Beaumont-Adams Double Action Revolver and it was made in the late 1850′s. This will be held at 11am and again at 1pm – just turn up.
Also coming up, and based around another Victorian object from our collection is the Funky Fan workshop, which is one of our family events. Learn how to make a fan to take home – it will keep you cool through our sizzling Summer! Drop in to Wolverhampton Art Gallery anytime between 11am and 1pm on Monday 24th August – there will be a small £2 charge to cover materials.
The Highland Laddie’s Return
Hello!
I got so excited about writing my first blog last week that I completely forgot to introduce myself! As Joanne mentioned, I am a Museum Studies student at Leicester, but I am originally from Malvern – so I consider myself to be a bit of a West Midlands lass. That was a long time and many cities ago, and suffice to say I am now embarking upon my second career!
The gallery has been buzzing with activity as we continue with our programme of Summer events, and coming up this week – on Wednesday 12th August, at 11am - we have a talk by one of our art interpreters, Keith Oram, called “The Highland Laddie’s Return”. As part of our adult event calendar, this talk looks at Scotland in the Victorian times, with a focus on the history of tartan.
The title of Keith’s talk is drawn from one the paintings in the Victorian Room at Wolverhampton Art Gallery, which shows a soldier being welcomed back after fighting in the Second Afghan War.
Also on Wednesday is a family event at Bantock House Museum – Musical Mayhem will be led by the ever popular Andy Casserley and is sure to be lots of fun. The times can be seen on our website.
Both events are free, just come along!
‘Tis better to have loved and lost
This is one of the familiar short phrases penned by Lord Alfred Tennyson, a Poet Laureate for the United Kingdom, who was born 200 years ago this week, on 6 August 1809.
Tennyson’s poetry provided subjects for many works of art during the Victorian period. John Alfred Vinter (1828-1905) was inspired by Tennyson’s love poem The Miller’s Daughter. He depicted a husband declaring undying love for his wife as he holds a symbolic blue flower, a forget-me-not. The frame is inscribed:
And now those vivid hours are gone
Like mine own life to me though art
Where past and present wound in one
Do make a garland for the heart.
The Miller’s Daughter, by John Alfred Vintner, 1859. Image © Wolverhampton Arts + Museums.
This painting is on display in the Victorian rooms of Wolverhampton Art Gallery and was given to the gallery by Philip Horsman upon his death in 1891. Horsman was a Wolverhampton-based industrialist, who built and paid the total cost of £8,500 for Wolverhampton Art Gallery, which opened in 1884. This makes The Miller’s Daughter one of the earliest works of art in the city’s collection.
Many of Lord Tennyson’s poems were based on classical mythological themes and legends such as King Arthur, which satisfied the desire for a romantic vision of a chivalrous and pre-industrial past. The Pre-Raphaelites were particularly influenced by the ‘Arthurian’ legends. During the second half of the 19th century, Tennyson’s famous poem, The Lady of Shalott, spawned a number of paintings of this beautiful and tragic figure. The heroine lives on an island nearby King Arthur’s city of Camelot. She is under a curse and sees the world only in a mirror, weaving on her loom the reflections of the life that passes outside her castle.
Henry Darvall’s 1854 painting was inspired by Tennyson’s poetic lines; it was given to Wolverhampton Art Gallery in 1919 and also can be seen in the recently redisplayed Victorian rooms.
The Lady of Shalott, by Henry Darvall, oil on Canvas, 1854. Image © Wolverhampton Arts + Museums.
The famous Pre-Raphaelite artist John William Waterhouse (1849-1917) was inspired by other part of the same story: the Lady of Shalott saw in her mirror the reflection of Sir Lancelot and fell in love with him. She left her tower for Camelot, but her journey brought her to death. Waterhouse famous painting can be seen at Tate Britain, London.
The Lady of Shalott, by John William Waterhouse, 1888. Image © Tate Gallery, London.
It’s farewell from me, but hello from Sadie…
My time here at Wolverhampton Art Gallery has unfortunately come to an end and so my work on Victorian Wolverhampton is also ending. When I first started here and was asked to begin this blog, it seemed like some sort of impossible task- I had no previous experience of this strange new world, I’m not even on Facebook let alone Twitter and Myspace! It was a terrifying prospect that I would be given such responsibility, but I can honestly say that during the past 5 months in which the blog has been running, I have enjoyed every single minute!
It would have been fantastic if there could be more feedback on here from you letting us know what you think, but it has been so great to know that lots of people have visited and seen all of the hard work that not just me but everyone here at Wolverhampton Arts and Museums has done to make the Victorian Galleries such a success.
The blog will be taken over by Sadie Paige who is on a placement from the Museum Studies course at the University of Leicester. I will let her introduce herself and she will no doubt add a bit more information on the About Page.
Don’t forget to visit the fabulous Victorian Galleries at Bantock House Musuem and Wolverhampton Art Gallery. These permanent displays offer you the chance to learn some fascinating information about the Victorians, their passions, influences and art as well as stories of Victorian Wolverhampton.
So long and thank you everybody!
Your Victorian style portraits!
There was a great turn out last Saturday at The Mander Centre of people having their Victorian style portraits taken, thank you to all those who took part and came this Saturday 25th July to collect their images. There are some fantastic photos, most of them have been uploaded to our Flickr with more being uploaded shortly. If you didn’t collect your photo on Saturday, don’t panic! We will hold onto these images here at Wolverhampton Art Gallery, so you can request to have your image by calling the Marketing team on 01902 552040.
For more chances to dress up as Victorians check out the Victorian Fancy Dress Competition happening over at Bantock House Museum next Wednesday 5th August 2009. This free event is suitable for all ages, so you can bring along your whole family for a great Victorian style day out! There will be prizes awarded for best costumes and if you bring along your favourite toy or teddy bear and dress them up as Victorians, they too could be in with the chance of winning a prize! Judging is between 2pm and 3pm, for more information please call reception on 019102 552195.
Bantock House Museum, Finchfield Road, Wolverhampton, WV3 9LQ
www.wolverhamptonart.org.uk/bantock
Discover ‘Old Wolverhampton’
Local Historian Richard Rhodes will be giving a fascinating presentation on the Wolverhampton of yester year at Bantock House Museum next Saturday 1st August. ‘Old Wolverhampton’ will be taking place in the evening at 7.30pm. Using an original magic lantarn with square glass slides- many of which are 100 years old; the presentation will show how the now city of Wolverhampton has changed from the Victorian days to today.
So, to learn some intriguing facts about this marvellous city, drop into Bantock House Museum on Saturday 1st August, 7.30pm, there is no need to book. For more information, please call reception on 01902 552195.
Make your own Victorian Paper doll!
This image is not permitted for downloading. Image © 2000 Denise Van Patten.
This Saturday 25th July at Bantock House Museum, be inspired by the dolls on display in the Victorian Rooms to create your very own Victorian style paper dolls. In light of this, I was intrigued to know more about these make-your-own style toys, so I thought I would do some research into them to find out some more information.
Some of this information has been taken from The Original Paper Doll Artists Guild website.
Paper dolls are two dimensional figures drawn onto paper that have paper clothes which you can cut out and attach to your figure so that your doll can have several outfit changes. Here at Wolverhampton Arts and Museums, we offer many paper doll making workshops in which children can colour in the figure and its clothes before cutting out and attaching. The clothes are attached by extra paper ‘tags’ which can be folded around the body of the doll.
In Europe, the first paper dolls were made in France during the 1700′s, however, the first manufactured dolls were made in London in 1810. Manufacturers from Europe “…produced beautifully lithographed full-colour paper dolls. They often represented royalty and famous theatre personalities, including the German Royal Family, the House of Windsor, and actresses Ellen Terry, Lily Langtry and Lillian Russell.” (Taken from The Original Paper Doll Artists Guild) These beautiful dolls portrayed the latest fashion trends but also provided hours of entertainment for children and due to the nature of how they are made- they could easily be made at home to save on costs.
The first paper doll to be printed in a magazine was in 1859 in Godey’s Lady’s Book. Here they printed a black and white doll followed by several costumes for children to colour in. By the turn of the century, the paper doll had become hugely popular having been featured in many magazines for both lady’s and children. During the 20th century, there were all sorts of different paper dolls including a set of Disney characters published by Western Publishing.
On The Original Paper Doll Artists Guild website, there are claims that the demise of these dolls could be to blame on Barbie- perhaps children no longer wish to play with a two dimensional piece that can easily be destroyed. But then they go on to say that in fact Barbie was one of the most popular paper dolls up until the 1990′s!
“Paper-doll versions of Barbie and her sister, Skipper, were strong sellers in the 1970s to supplement their three-dimensional counterparts. Boyfriend Ken and girlfriend Midge were also made as paper dolls. Paper Barbies appeared in books and in boxed sets from 1962 through the 1990s…Another Barbie artistto appear in the 1990s was Barb Rausch, whose love of paper doll art started with Bill Woggon’s famous Katy Keene, first done for Archie Comics.”
Nowadays in this digital age, it seems that these works of art on paper are no longer as popular but for rainy days or if you feel like being creative, paper dolls are perfect to have a go at making. For more things to make at home visit The Victoria and Albert’s Museum of Childhood ‘Things to make at home’ page.
To join in the fun at Bantock House Museum this Saturday you will need to book a place by calling reception on 01902 552195. There are two worshops running throughout the day, one at 11am-1pm and one at 2pm-4pm, £2 per child. Look out for more workshops at Wolverhampton Art Gallery throughout the summer, there will be a Victorian Toy Extravaganza on Monday 3rd August and Friday 28th August to create your own Victorian style toys.
School’s out, now let’s have some fun!
Wondering what to do with your little ones for 6 whole weeks? There are plenty of fun filled activities taking place at Bantock House Museum and Wolverhampton Art Gallery to keep all the family amused!
Now that the summer holidays are upon us, there are lots of Victorian themed events to fill up the entire holiday. Here is just a little selection of what to expect, for more events, take a look at our calender or the Events this summer page. The events listed here are suitable for children aged 5-11 years, those under 8 years must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
Printing Patterns
Friday 24th July 2009, 11am-1pm
Wolverhampton Art Gallery
Make beautiful patterns and designs influenced by the pieces in the Victorian Gallery. Free, drop in.
Black and Gold
Thursday 30th July 2009, 10am-12pm & 1pm-3pm
Bantock House Museum
There are many examples of japanning on display at Bantock House Museum. This was a technique which made Wolverhampton famous, with its beautiful high gl0ss finish and striking designs usually in gold, it became a popular alternative to laquer ware from asia. In this workshop, after taking a look at the examples, you can then have a go at creating your own versions. Free, drop in.
Teeny-Tiny Theatres
Friday 31st July 2009, 11am-1pm
Wolverhampton Art Gallery
Come and create your very own toy theatre as inspired by the fabulous diorama in the Victorian Gallery. Free, drop in.
Victorian Fancy Dress Competition
Wednesday 5th August 2009, judging 2pm-3pm
Bantock House Museum
There will be prizes for best costumes and also if you bring your favourite toy or teddy bear and dress them as Victorian’s, they will be in with the chance of winning! This event is suitable for all ages, so the whole family can get involved! Free, drop in.
Victorian Story Time
Saturday 15th August 2009, call for times
Wolverhampton Art Gallery
Take a sneaky peek at some of the Victorian objects that aren’t in the new Victorian Gallery, then create your own stories and be enthralled by the storyteller. £2 per child, booking required.
For more events this summer that don’t have a Victorian theme (well, they can’t all I suppose!), take a look at Wolverhampton Arts and Museums’ website or Wolverhampton’s summer campaign ‘Enjoy Summer in Wolverhampton ’09′ which has even more venues and events!
Your Victorian Portrait!
Come and join in the fun at Wolverhampton’s Mander Centre on Saturday 18th July to have your very own Victorian style portrait taken! We have plenty of things for you to get dressed in from hats and wigs to moustaches and monocles! This free event is suitable for all ages, just drop in to the Mander Centre on the day between 12pm and 4pm.
Collection of your free Victorian portrait is taking place the following Saturday 25th July at Wolverhampton Art Gallery. Don’t miss your chance to have a great photo taken that you can keep, and to come and enjoy the Victorian Gallery for yourself to see what all the fuss is about!
The portraits will be available to view on our Flickr site and some will be uploaded here for you to have a mooch!
