Newsletters

 

 Chairman’s thoughts 2025

Welcome to the latest edition of the FLAG newsletter, my first as your new chair, having
taken over from Graham Cooper at the AGM. I hope to follow on from Graham’s
contributions over the last few years.

After some delays caused, believe it or not by weather, the reroofing and installation of
climate equipment is proceeding and has enabled the part reopening of the main gallery. I do
recommend that you visit the current exhibition, ‘A Different View’ which showcases many
female artists’ work from the gallery’s own collection. These range from the familiar, such as
Lucy Kemp-Welch, to some less well-known artists, all of whom deserve better recognition.
FLAG funded the catalogue for the exhibition, so FLAG members can pick up a free copy
from the reception desk. FLAG is now regularly represented on the Exhibition Planning
Meetings at the gallery, better enabling us to make decisions about support for future
exhibitions, plans for which are in place through to the end of 2027.

In the newsletter, you will find the dates for the winter talks programme and a flyer with the
details of each will be sent out shortly. In the meantime, please make a note of the dates and
times in your diaries. The Friday Focus talks resume in September, and the one on the 12th
will be held in the cinema at the Spa Centre. This is to enable a showing of the film about the
Bridgeman sculpture of the Unknown Refugee that was recently installed in Jephson
Gardens. The film will be accompanied by short talks by Dr Jane Bridgeman and Professor
Michael as well as film maker Andrew David Barker. Thereafter, talks will be in the gallery
as usual.

FLAG will be present at the Leamington History Group Heritage Day on September 13th in
All Saints Church, so do bring a friend or family member (or two!) and come along to see us.
The church will be open between 10.00am and 3.00pm.

Thank you for your continuing support of FLAG which in turn enables us to fulfil our
function of supporting the Art Gallery & Museum for the benefit of local residents and
visitors to Leamington alike.

Paul Baker
Chair

 

 

Art Gallery News

As you will know, for the last few months we have been dealing with disruption while our  leaking roof is being repaired. This work will transform the building and enable us to re-open  spaces that have been closed off for many years. However, the process has proved to be more  invasive than anticipated as the builders deal with the damage caused by years of water  leaking into the fabric of the building. Unfortunately, after reconfiguring the gallery to ensure  a selection of artworks were safely displayed, we had to close the main gallery completely to allow for the installation of a new support beam running the full length of the left-hand wall.  Thankfully, access can remain open to Haddie’s family gallery, our wonderful new exhibition  A Different View and the museum.  

This is not how we had hoped to start the summer holiday period, but our job is to preserve  the collections and ensure they are safe for future generations. We are very much looking  forward to re-opening this space in the autumn. 

Exhibitions, displays and collections 

Our last exhibition Unravelling History: unpicking the collections and reworking textile  traditions closed in May. Co-created by history curator Abi Flack and artist Annabel  Rainbow, it showcased the work of Annabel herself plus five other internationally renowned  textile artists from the Midlands: Laura Kemshall, Linda Kemshall, Daniel Lismore, Jennie  Moncur and Stephanie Redfern. Their extraordinary work was presented alongside items  from the gallery and museum collection. The exhibition was incredibly popular and appealed  to a wide range of visitors. The ‘Meet the Artist’ events were a particular success. 

We are now showing A Different View: women artists in the Leamington Spa Art Gallery &  Museum collection. After a delayed opening due to the roof work, we hosted a wonderful  celebration event on 10th July. Curated by Kellie Sabin, this exhibition shows artworks by  women artists from our collection alongside new work by artists based in the area. The hang  does more than just tell a story, it is a statement of intent – revealing shared passions,  unbridled determination and references which are robustly feminine. The ideas in the  exhibition will be further explored in a symposium at the Art Gallery in September. As usual,  the exhibition is accompanied by a publication, which was created thanks to funding from  FLAG. We were delighted to be able to publish the new research underpinning the exhibition.  Doing this allows LSAG&M to contribute to the academic discussions which are currently  taking place about women artists, their work and their stories.  

 

 Included in A Different View are two  

of our most recent acquisitions: a pair  

of exquisite paintings by Mary Riley 

titled Lake 1 and Lake 11. They were  

donated by Mary at the end of 2024  

with the intention that they would be  

included in the exhibition. They’re  

exquisite examples of the way in  

which the landscape, and the feelings  

it elicits, can be captured in colour and abstraction. 

 

We are so pleased to have these works in  the collection for posterity. 

We were recently offered a collection of items from the daughter of someone who had  worked at Lockheed/Automotive Products. She had seen a clutch part on display in the 25  Years exhibition and contacted us. Her father, Paul Watkins, worked at AP from the 1950s– 1980s as a technical draughtsman and, in later years, as a section leader in the brakes section.  His career saw the beginning of the move away from hand drawing and towards CAD  (Computer Aided Design). The donation includes a large drawing of a brake part, which he  designed, as well as a number of his drawing tools. These are welcome additions to our  Social History collection, telling a story from one of the town’s most significant employers,  as well as something which speaks to the intersection of art and engineering. 

Learning & Engagement 

The Learning & Engagement team have had an exciting few months at the gallery and museum; alongside our programme of events, we have welcomed a number of schools in for  workshops and continue to develop our educational offering. In June we hosted an open day  for the Home Education community and following a brilliant response, we will be launching  a Home Education Programme later in the year. Thank you to the members of FLAG for  supporting our schools programme and the visit from Evergreen School in April. 

While the essential roof works continue, some of the artworks were put away for safe  keeping. This provided the L&E team with the opportunity to expand our family engagement  area which has been well received by visiting families. Sadly, this expanded area has now had  to be closed, but our Craft Studio and Haddie’s Gallery remains accessible as usual. 

We also had some interesting speakers for Friday Focus, including from the Lord Leycester  and Leamington History Group. Friday Focus on 12th September will be at the Royal Spa  Centre, a film on John Bridgeman.  

Arts Development  

In July the Arts Project and Arts Development grants were awarded to a range of  local arts organisations responsible for delivering inclusive arts and heritage projects across  Warwick District. We are very proud to support the work of so many creative groups and  these grants are a tangible part of Warwick District’s Creative Framework, relaunched this  year, which seeks to support the district’s growing reputation as a thriving cultural hub. 

We would like to thank FLAG not just for the funding provided over the last few months, but  also for your ongoing support. It has been particularly appreciated as we negotiate through  our current building repair project. 

Chloe Johnson and Vicki Slade 

Collections & Engagement Managers