GALLERY CORNER Time to celebrate how ‘amazing’ we are!
YVONNE ROBINS
HAWORTH Art Gallery is proud to present its summer exhibition, ‘Amazing Accrington’.
Spread across the gallery, it includes the fascinating history of the East Lancashire Concert Band, which was once the Accrington Old Band, as well as the story of Joseph Briggs, the Accrington print engraver who became Louis Comfort Tiffany’s right-hand man and gave the Tiffany glass collection to the people of Accrington.
We are also displaying a ‘Walk of Fame’ celebrating Accrington celebrities - and one of the highlights is the work of Sixties’ celebrity portrait artist Gerard de Rose. This is the first time a retrospective exhibition has been held of his work and, in addition to portraits of David Hockney, David Oxtoby and Morecambe and Wise, there is also a wide selection of photographs, news cuttings and memorabilia showing Gerard with the celebrities he painted.
We are really thrilled that his son Theo and granddaughters Ellie and Agnés will be attending the launch on Saturday, August 5.
The final section of the exhibition celebrates the life and work of two recently departed stalwarts of Accrington:
Garth Dawson will always be remembered for his photojournalism of local life through the pages of the Accrington Observer and Accrington Camera Club.
The current display shows some of the celebrities captured on camera by Garth, from Jon Anderson’s early days in ‘The Warriors’ to the Queen visiting the Dunkenhalgh.
Evonne Harwood will always be remembered as one of the ‘Wonder Women of Warner Street’, a driving force that gave the town ‘Dickensian Evenings’ and ‘I Do Like To Be Beside the Seaside’ – complete with an inland beach! Her sudden passing in April came as a terrible shock to all who knew her. Through this exhibition, put together by her partner Guy and best friend Kate, we aim to give a fitting tribute to a woman who gave so much to the town.
Gallery manager Yvonne Robins said: ‘There are so many reasons to be proud of the town where we live and work and this exhibition just touches the surface of all which is Amazing Accrington.”
The gallery is open Tuesday to Friday 12 noon to 4.45pm, Saturday, Sunday 12 noon to 4.15pm, closed all day Monday, free entrance and parking.
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