Falmouth Art Gallery

Last updated

Falmouth Art Gallery
Falmouth Library 2019-07-07 (1).jpg
The Municipal Buildings in Falmouth (the gallery is on the upper floor)
Falmouth Art Gallery
Established10 October 1978;45 years ago (10 October 1978)
LocationThe Moor, Municipal Buildings, Falmouth, Cornwall
TypePublicly funded art museum
Nearest parkingTown Quarry car park
Website www.falmouthartgallery.com/Gallery/Home

Falmouth Art Gallery is a publicly funded art gallery in Cornwall, with one of the leading art collections in Cornwall and southwest England, [1] which features work by old masters, major Victorian artists, British and French Impressionists, leading surrealists and maritime artists, children's book illustrators, automata, contemporary painters and printmakers. It is located on The Moor, on the upper floor of the Municipal Buildings above the Library in Falmouth, Cornwall.

Contents

History

Falmouth Art Gallery in its present form opened on the upper floor of the Municipal Buildings on 12 October 1978 and was renovated with grant aid from the Heritage Lottery Fund and other funding bodies, before being re-opened by Sir Tim Rice on 31 May 1996. Falmouth Art Gallery is a service funded by Falmouth Town Council and is a nationally accredited museum and complies with standards laid down for the Registration of Museums in the United Kingdom. [2]

The core of the town's art collection dates from 1923, with gifts made by Alfred de Pass (1861–1952), a South African businessman and art benefactor. This has encouraged other major donations, most notably from Richard Harris, Robert Priseman, [3] Grace Gardner, [4] and Sue and Ron Astles. The gallery has also benefited from purchases made through grant funding from organisations such as The Art Fund, [1] the Heritage Lottery Fund, MLA/V&A Purchase Grant Fund, and the Nerys Johnson Contemporary Art Fund. [5]

The collection

Painting by Henry Scott Tuke depicting a French Barque in Falmouth Bay Henry Scott Tuke - French Barque in Falmouth Bay (1902).jpg
Painting by Henry Scott Tuke depicting a French Barque in Falmouth Bay
Painting by Anne Killigrew depicting Venus Attired by the Three Graces Anne Killigrew - Venus Attired by the Three Graces.jpg
Painting by Anne Killigrew depicting Venus Attired by the Three Graces

Most of its art collection came from donations made by Alfred de Pass, a businessman and philanthropist who spent an important amount of his personal fortune on buying works of art, which were generously donated to museums and galleries throughout England and South Africa [6] The town's art collection, administered by the gallery's director Brian Stewart until his untimely death in 2010, [7] features works by major British artists including Sir Frank Brangwyn, Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, Charles Napier Hemy, Dame Laura Knight, Sir Alfred Munnings, Harry Ousey, William Strang, Henry Scott Tuke, John William Waterhouse, George Frederick Watts and Cornish painter John Opie.[ citation needed ]

Following a 2009 Art Fund bequest, Falmouth acquired a major collection including etchings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Edvard Munch, and several works by Prunella Clough, one of the most significant British painters and printmakers of the post-war period. [1] This was followed in 2013 by a major gift of 20 works of art to the gallery from the British artist Robert Priseman (b. 1965). Known as The Robert Priseman Gift [8] works of art by leading British artists of the 21st century such as Mary Webb, Sir Peter Blake, Nicholas Middleton, Marguerite Horner, Alex Hanna, Simon Burton, Simon Carter and Julian Brown were donated to the Gallery.[ citation needed ]

Falmouth also holds one of the most important master print collections outside London, including woodcuts, engravings, lithographs and screen prints by Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt, Claude Lorrain, Adriaen van Ostade, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Francis Bacon, Merlyn Evans, Andy Warhol, Patrick Caulfield and Sir Peter Blake. [1] In addition, Falmouth houses small but important collections of 20th-century and contemporary photography and Surrealism. [9] It has the largest collection of Lee Miller photographs outside the 'Lee Miller Archive', as well as remarkable photographs by Eve Arnold, Fay Godwin and Linda McCartney. The Surrealist collection includes photographs by Roland Penrose and works by Henry Moore, Man Ray, Eileen Agar and the Cornish surrealist Jonathon Coudrille. [10]

Exhibitions

'Thanks for the Apples' installation view Thanks for the Apples installation view.jpg
'Thanks for the Apples' installation view

Falmouth Art Gallery has an exhibition and event programme that display works from their permanent collection alongside major museum loans, work from local artists, community groups, school children and students.

Their art collection is large and eclectic for a small museum. The works are rotated regularly in the entrance and main galleries and they work to variety of themes.

The staircase gallery is used for community displays. Groups such as Falcare, Age Concern, local schools and Falmouth University visit on a regular basis and create art in response to works on display.

In November 2021 to January 2022, the gallery hosted a collaborative group exhibition titled 'Thanks for the Apples', which featured nationally and internationally recognised contemporary artists including Nicholas Deshayes and Caragh Thuring. The show was devised and produced by Naomi Frears and Ben Sanderson, who invited artists on a trip to Cornwall to visit the county's museums and explore their collections and archives.

'Thanks for the Apples' exhibition poster. The exhibition ran from 27 November 2021 - 22 January 2022. Thanks for the apples poster-digital.jpg
'Thanks for the Apples' exhibition poster. The exhibition ran from 27 November 2021 - 22 January 2022.

From the thousands of artefacts they saw during the week, both on display as well as behind the scenes, the artists each chose objects they were drawn to and produced work in response.  From a hairball found inside a bull to a row of whimsy bottles and a tiny calendar, these artists focused their attention on objects and artworks that, while not hidden, can be overlooked, asking questions about the nature of these artefacts and what they might mean to people now.

The modern collection includes specially commissioned works for seasonal exhibitions such as the Darwin200 exhibitions in 2009, celebrating the arrival in Falmouth of Charles Darwin at the end of his HMS Beagle voyage in 1836. A plaque was erected as part of these celebrations in Falmouth marking the point where Darwin came ashore near the gallery and left by mail coach for Shrewsbury. Exhibitions and the permanent collection includes contemporary Cornish artists such as John Dyer the official Darwin200 artist for the Southwest. [11]

In 2016, Cornwall-based artist Andrew Lanyon created an exhibition 'The Musings of Creatures - imagined in a barren land' [12] which featured many artist and brought a range of new work into the Falmouth Art Gallery Collection including those by Andrew Litten, Carlos Zapda and David Kemp. [13]

Notable previous exhibitions include the "Surrealists on Holiday" in Cornwall and Matisse; a list of previous exhibitions can be found on the website.

Exhibitions are mounted in partnership with many organisations including Newlyn School paintings from Penlee House Museum and Gallery, Royal Cornwall Museum Truro, Falmouth University and Newquay Zoo.

Table of Recent Exhibitions

Main exhibitions:

Exhibition titleDatesInformationHighlights
‘Hevva Hevva: Fishing in Cornwall’25 June – 10 Sept 2022An exhibition which explored the importance and impact of the fishing industry in Cornwall, through history up to present day.Cornwall Climate Care’s documentary film ‘Plenty More Fish?’ (Cornwallclimate.org)
‘Polperro: Cornwall’s Forgotten Art Centre’2 April - 18 June 2022An exhibition of Polperro artists which provided an overview of how Polperro developed not only as an art centre but also as a fishing port.

Curated by Cornish Art Historian David Tovey.

Mouat Loudan’s critically acclaimed 1888 Royal Academy exhibit, Fish Sale, Polperro, which has been unexhibitable for decades but which Falmouth Art Gallery arranged to be restored for the show. A photo of the old damage was displayed next to the freshly restored piece so visitors could see the changes.
'The Art of Animation From Scribble to Screen: Behind the Scenes of Animation Production'29 January - 26 March 2022This exhibition presented the inner workings of the production process involved with making animated films.

A partnership exhibition with Falmouth University

Work from the companies behind such films as The Gruffalo, The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Mr. Bean, The Snail and the Whale and Shaun the Sheep.

Entrance Gallery exhibitions:

Exhibition titleDatesInformationHighlights
The Surrealists in Cornwall 85th Anniversary19 July - 24 September 2022This exhibition celebrated the 85th anniversary of a holiday to Cornwall taken by a group of Surrealists.Photographs by Lee Miller and Roland Penrose.
Roll the Dice23 May - 16 July 2022Artwork made by Falmouth Art Gallery’s youth climate activist art group displayed alongside works from the gallery collection which they used as inspiration in some of their workshops.
Blake +72 April - 21 May 2022Pop Art from the Falmouth Art Gallery collection.Works by Sir Peter Blake RA, Tony Foster, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol.
'Rodney Peppe: The Storyteller'Jan - Mar 2022A showcase of objects, paintings, illustrations and animation from the well-known children's artist and author Rodney Peppe.Episodes of the stop-motion animated series Huxley Pig, displayed next to the original models used in the show.

Education

The gallery runs year-round regular free workshops for a wide range of visitors including families, babies and toddlers, schools and community groups. They particularly welcome visits from special needs groups and adults with severe learning difficulties.[ citation needed ]

Awards and recognition

Falmouth Art Gallery has been nominated for or won 19 major awards including The Guardian newspaper Kids in Museums Award 2006 (Winner), [14] the Sandford Award for Heritage Education, and the Gulbenkian Prize, Britain's most prestigious arts award. [15] [ check quotation syntax ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tate</span> Art museum in the United Kingdom

Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art</span> Part of National Galleries of Scotland in Edinburgh

National Galleries Scotland: Modern is part of National Galleries Scotland, which is based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Modern houses the collection of modern and contemporary art dating from about 1900 to the present in two buildings, Modern One and Modern Two, that face each other on Belford Road to the west of the city centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roland Penrose</span> British artist and art historian (1900-1984)

Sir Roland Algernon Penrose was an English artist, historian and poet. He was a major promoter and collector of modern art and an associate of the surrealists in the United Kingdom. During the Second World War he put his artistic skills to practical use as a teacher of camouflage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Snoddy</span> British artist and gallery director (born 1959)

Stephen Snoddy is a British artist and gallery director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Maritime Museum Cornwall</span> Museum in Cornwall, England

The National Maritime Museum, Cornwall is located in a harbourside building at Falmouth in Cornwall, England. The building was designed by architect M. J. Long, following an architectural design competition managed by RIBA Competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Umerle</span> American-born abstract painter

Julie Umerle is an American-born abstract painter who lives and works in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Priseman</span> British painter

Robert Priseman is a British artist, collector, writer, curator and publisher who lives and works in Essex, England. Over 200 works of art by Priseman are held in art museum collections around the world including the V&A, Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Musée de Louvain la Neuve, The Royal Collection at Windsor Castle, The Allen Memorial Art Museum, The Mead Art Museum, Honolulu Museum of Art and The National Galleries of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Contemporary Art Society</span> UK charity

The Contemporary Art Society (CAS) is an independent charity that champions the collecting of outstanding contemporary art and craft for UK museum collections. Since its founding in 1910 the organisation has donated over 10,000 works to museums across the UK. From the 1930s the Society also donated works to Commonwealth museums, but since 1989 the focus has remained exclusively on UK institutions.

Nicola Bealing is a Cornwall-based British painter.

Barrie Cook was a British abstract artist who lived and worked on The Lizard in Cornwall, England.

Simon Burton was born in Yorkshire, England in 1973 and received a first class bachelor's degree at the University of Brighton in 1995, before completing his MA in 1997 at the Royal College of Art. Described by Lucian Freud in 1997 as, "the most promising young artist in Britain today," Burton received the Birtle prize for painting (1995), a travel award to ARCO studios in Lisbon, Portugal (1996), The John Minton Travel award (1996), The Jenny Hall Scholarship (1996) and worked in the USA under the patronage of Robert and Susan Kasen-Summer (1997–98).

Nicholas Middleton is an English artist. He studied at the London Guildhall University 1993. In 1994, at the Winchester School of Art where he was awarded a BA Honours Fine Art in 1997. In 2006 he was the Visitors' Choice prizewinner at John Moores Painting Prize 24 and in 2010 Middleton was a Prizewinner and the Visitors' Choice Award prizewinner at John Moores Painting Prize 2010. His paintings are "primarily influenced by the experience of the urban environment as a visual arena where unexpected juxtapositions occur". He is a member of Contemporary British Painting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Carter (artist)</span> Artist and curator

Simon Carter is an English artist and curator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marguerite Horner</span> British artist

Marguerite Horner is a British artist who won the 2018 British Women Artist Award. Her paintings aim to investigate, among other things, notions of transience, intimacy, loss and hope. She uses the external world as a trigger or metaphor for these experiences and through a period of gestation and distillation, makes a series of intuitive decisions that lead the work towards completion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Hanna</span> English artist

Alex Hanna is an English artist. He studied Fine Art at Sunderland Polytechnic from 1983 to 1986. His paintings display arrangements of disposable packaging and objects which have little or no material value. These objects are arranged in a traditional still life format and painted using process based and traditional painting techniques.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Contemporary British Painting</span>

Contemporary British Painting is an artists' collective of over 60 members, founded in 2013 by Robert Priseman with the assistance of Simon Carter. It is a platform for contemporary painting in the UK "seeking to explore and promote critical context and dialogue in current painting practice through a series of solo and group exhibitions; talks, publications and an art prize". ‘Contemporary British Painting’ also facilitates the donation of paintings to art collections, galleries and museums in the UK and around the world.

Julian Brown is a British artist. He lives and works in London. He studied at Liverpool John Moores University, England (1993–96) and Royal Academy Schools, London (1998–2001). His work is heavily influenced by childhood visions and the folk-art from his Polish mother. He was long-listed for the John Moores Painting Prize in 2016 and in 2012 was shortlisted for the Marmite Prize in Painting IV (2012–13). Brown has exhibited his work nationally and internationally and is a member of Contemporary British Painting.

The Priseman Seabrook Collection is a British-based private collection founded by the artist Robert Priseman and his wife Ally Seabrook. It is composed of three distinct categories: 21st Century British Painting, 20th and 21st Century British Works on Paper and Contemporary Chinese Works on Paper, and is a collection partner of Art UK.

David Manley, artist, educationalist and arts administrator was born in Devon and lives and works in North West Leicestershire, UK. He received a Diploma in Art & Design, Fine Art from Falmouth School of Art in 1972 and a Higher Diploma in Art & Design, Fine Art from Birmingham School of Art, Birmingham Polytechnic in 1974. He also has a Master of Arts (MA) in Photography from De Montfort University, Leicester, UK. In 1975 Manley was awarded a painting fellowship at Gloucestershire College of Art and Design. There followed a career in arts administration including Visual Arts Director and Head of Public Affairs at East Midlands Arts, UK. In 1994 he was appointed Assistant Dean of the School of Art and Design at the University of Derby and became Dean of the school in 1995. In 2003 he was appointed Dean of the new Faculty of Arts, Design and Technology at the University of Derby and in 2007 Director of Cultural Development.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Litten</span> British painter

Andrew Litten is a Cornwall-based English artist born in 1970 in Aylesbury, UK. His paintings have been exhibited in the United Kingdom, including the Tate Modern in London, China, USA, Germany, Australia, Mexico, Poland and Italy.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Major collection given to Falmouth Art Gallery via Art Fund bequest". The Art Fund. 8 June 2009. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  2. "Work Placement Handbook" (PDF). Falmouth Art Gallery. pp. 3–5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 November 2021. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  3. "The Robert Priseman Gift". www.falmouthartgallery.com. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  4. Looksystems.net Note on Grace Gardner and her pictures [ permanent dead link ], Falmouth Art Gallery.
  5. "The Origins of the Collection". Falmouth Art Gallery. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  6. "Art UK – Your Paintings – Falmouth Art Gallery". Art UK . Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  7. Birkett, Dea (23 December 2010). "Brian Stewart obituary". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
  8. "The Robert Priseman Gift". Falmouth Art Gallery. 2013. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
  9. "Surrealists Collection". Falmouth Art Gallery. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  10. "Masters of Photography". Falmouth Art Gallery. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  11. Archive of Seasonal Exhibitions 2003–2008 Archived 14 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine , Falmouth Art Gallery.
  12. "The Musings of Creatures - imagined in a barren land | Falmouth Art Gallery". www.falmouthartgallery.com. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  13. "Artists A-Z | The Permanent Collection | Falmouth Art Gallery". www.falmouthartgallery.com. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  14. Caroline Lewis, "Falmouth Art Gallery wins Guardian Family Friendly Award 2006 Archived 30 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine , Culture 24, 28 July 2006.
  15. List of awards received by the Gallery Archived 30 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine , Falmouth Art Gallery.

50°09′21″N5°04′21″W / 50.1557°N 5.0724°W / 50.1557; -5.0724