Arts & Antiques

Somerton exhibition

ACEarts are holding a fundraising exhibition in their gallery in the Old Town Hall, Market Place, Somerton from Tuesday, September 13th–17th, with an opening event on Shetland series by Janette Kerr Monday, September 12th, 6–8pm.

It is a small charity that provides art and creative activity to inspire, empower and enable people to develop and grow. They engage with all ages and abilities, schools and community groups whilst continuing to be passionate about showcasing work by local artists.

Like many other small charities, they have been hit first by the pandemic and latterly the cost of living crisis. The fundraising exhibition, entitled ALL RISE, will feature works donated by many of ACEarts supporting artists.

Details: 01458 273008 hello@acearts.co.uk www.acearts.co.uk

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Draycott art exhibition

DRAYCOTT Art Club will be having an exhibition at Wells and Mendip Museum from Wednesday, August 31st until Saturday, September 17th, 10am-4pm.

The club had a long lay-off due to Covid but many of the members remained busy and the club started back last September. Now in its tenth year, they are very excited to be holding their first exhibition for a number of years at the museum.

The exhibition will show a great variety of subjects by longtime members and newcomers. There will be framed pictures, mounted work in browsers and reproduction prints and cards for sale at affordable prices. Members of the club will be on duty at the show to talk about the pictures and the work of the club. The club meets regularly on Thursdays at Draycott Memorial Hall with weekly sketching trips during the Draycott life class summer holidays.

Details: draycottartclub.mendip@gmail.com

The value of long forgotten products

WE might think the “throwaway society” is a recent phenomenon but we’d be wrong. Coloured glass medicine bottles, ceramic pot lids were all beautifully made and then thrown away as soon as their contents were used up. Our Victorian and Edwardian forebears were the culprits for starting today’s huge landfill problem. What they regarded as rubbish, however, can provide a fertile hunting ground for today’s collectors.

Following the Industrial Revolution, working people found they had more money in their pockets to spend on life’s luxuries and necessities. A whole industry emerged packaging the many patent products that were appearing on the shelves of the chemist and grocer’s shop – from toothpaste to fish paste.

It was the Victorians who spotted the commercial possibilities of using new printing technology to decorate the lids of containers for popular products with sophisticated designs. They are often miniature works of art with their fairground style lettering extolling the virtues of long-forgotten products such as

“Areca Nut Toothpaste”. Most are worth a few pounds. However, particularly decorative examples can make substantially more. A pot lid advertising “Dr Dosteel’s Cherry Toothpaste” printed with a particularly fearsome portrait of Queen Victoria will routinely sell for over £1,000 in good condition. With Dangerous liquids were originally sold in exactly the same CHRIS YEO design of bottle as any other substance but, following a number of inevitable deaths, a law was passed which said that all bottles containing noxious substances should be easily identifiable by being made of distinctive green or blue glass, as well as being textured in a way that would make them easily identifiable by sight and touch. One of the rarest and most coveted by collectors is in the shape of a skull emblazoned with the word “POISON”. This grisly apparition must have sent a shiver down the spine and kept curious fingers at bay. Should you be lucky enough to unearth one of these in your back garden you would be looking at around a very healthy £2,000.

Chris Yeo is a valuer at Clevedon Salerooms and regular expert on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow Please visit the website www.clevedonsalerooms.com for more details

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Chew Valley’s 20 years

THEYsay time flies when you’re having fun and indeed it seems no time at all since our first Chew Valley Arts Trail. But here we are preparing for the 20th anniversary of a hugely successful event which is taking place on Saturday, October 8th and Sunday, October 9th 10am-6pm.

The trail started off as an affordable way for artists to show off their talents and market their work and it is still achieving that aim today. Some exhibitors have taken part since the beginning, but there has always been a lot of new talent joining in each year.

Visitors have told us they have enjoyed the amazing variety of quality work they have seen, making purchases and chatting about techniques and materials, in many cases being spurred on to take up a craft themselves.

Over those two decades the event has drawn literally thousands of people to the area. Many people turn a visit to the trail into a fun family day out, driving or cycling around the valley and stopping off for lunch or a cup of tea and a piece of cake.

Brochures are widely available and all the details are on the website.

Sandy Bell

Details: www.chewvalleyartstrail.co.uk tintinna@aol.com 01275 333128

Auctions provide great opportunities for upcycling

AS we face ever increasing economic uncertainty, auctions provide a great opportunity to sell unwanted items to raise funds or to buy needed items at good value. Upcycling is becoming increasing popular and this involves taking old objects and putting them to a new creative use.

At the Mendip Auction Rooms, in addition to their monthly sales of Fine Art, Antiques, Silver and Jewellery, the team stage regular Interiors and Collectables sales at which a range of furniture, collectables, ceramics and interesting objects are sold.

Quality furniture and other items can be purchased at prices which represent excellent value compared to well-known retail outlets. If you are purchasing your first home or upsizing, then do visit the auction rooms on viewing days to see if there is anything that may help you furnish your new home – it is very likely there will be!

If you are seeking contemporary and modern furniture then Killens also stage sales of modern design furniture and other items often with well-known labels.

Buying or selling at auction doesn’t have to be scary and the team at Killens are very welcoming and can readily guide you through the process. To buy you can either attend an auction in person, arrange a telephone bid or bid online.

Viewing days are held before sale days and extend into the evenings making it easy to contemplate a purchase. If you want to see what is in forthcoming auctions, keep an eye on the auction rooms website – mendipauctionrooms.co.uk – or email the team at enquiries@mendipauctionrooms.co.uk to join the mailing list.

Are you looking to sell items? Valuations can be undertaken on a drop-in basis at the auction rooms between 10am and 3pm each weekday and Killens have professional valuers and experts on hand to advise. Alternatively, valuers are able to conduct free home visits.

Quality items at good value can be found at the Mendip Auction Rooms

Contact the team at Killens on 01749 840770 or email enquiries@mendipauctionrooms.co.uk for further assistance

Horsepower: central to Somerset’s rural heritage

ARTIST and metalworker Jacky Oliver has been commissioned to create a large-scale kinetic contemporary artwork, inspired by the history of the horse in agriculture, as part of Somerset Art Weeks and to coincide with a new exhibition at the Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury.

Co-commissioned with SAW organisers Somerset Art Works, Jacky will seek inspiration from research undertaken at the museum which looks at different ways that horses have been central to Somerset’s rural heritage.

The history of Abbey Farm, of which the Abbey Barn formed a part, and home to the museum, will also be an important source of inspiration. Elements of the commissioned artwork have been produced in leather by Jessie White, a multidisciplinary designer and maker.

For centuries horses played a central role in the everyday lives of Somerset people. The exhibition, Horse Power: The Story of Horses in Rural Somerset, will feature a rich display of paintings, photographs, museum objects and oral histories from the Somerset Voices archive to tell the story of how horses helped shape the rural landscape of the county. It will also consider the wider use of the horse at key moments in history,

A horse pulling a hay cart at Abbey Farm c1945

including during different conflicts.

The artwork will be on display in the Abbey Barn, from September 17th to October 30th, as part of the Somerset Art Weeks festival.

Arts workshops

One of the workshops in Shepton Mallet’s Collett Park

A SERIES of free workshops have been held in Shepton Mallet as part of a collaborative community arts project celebrating diversity, connectivity and the environment.

The Gleaning is being cocurated by the Rev Gill Sakakini, the arts pioneer for the Bath and Wells Diocese, and environmental sculptor Fiona Campbell with support from writer Polly Hall. The centrepieces of the project will be large-scale translucent textile artworks which will be suspended in front of clear glass windows in Shepton Mallet’s SS Peter and Paul church as part of Somerset Art Weeks. The exhibition will be supported by events including a jazz concert, film, interpretive dance, and dramatic presentation of the Book of Ruth. l The artworks will be on show from September 22nd until October 9th. The church is open from 10am-6pm daily.

Seeking sanctuary in art

ARTISTS across Somerset will be responding to the theme of “Sanctuary” for this year’s Somerset Art Weeks taking place between September 24th and October 9th.

More than 300 artists will be hosting exhibitions and events in more than 100 venues, including loft spaces, tithe barns, stables, museums, churches, farms, libraries and a prison.

Members of Somerset Art Works and commissioned artists will be showcasing their work, giving local people and visitors to the county the opportunity to discover high quality shows and exhibitions in unique and inspiring locations across the county.

SAW recently declared a Climate Emergency and, reflecting this, the event has a focus on sustainability. Many of the artists have been inspired by their relationship to the natural world. Others have responded to shared experiences of the pandemic, often highlighting positive changes or allowing visitors to contemplate.

Six artists have taken over C-Wing at Shepton Mallet Prison to create immersive and interactive artworks using a variety of artforms and techniques, including creative computer coding, an installation exploring light and colour, painting and mark making as a practice of mindfulness and participatory installations considering themes of wellbeing.

Penelope O'Gara, of The Itinerant Bizarrium, has created figurative textile works exploring the theme of sanctuary within the setting of the 14th century church of St Peter in Evercreech.

In Muchelney – the name means “great island” – the church there provided sanctuary. To reflect this, Jane Mowat has created an installation of embroidery that floods, from the font and down the church nave, sewn with images of native plants.

A full event programme includes talks, walks and workshops focussing on making art, wellbeing and a return to nature. Each weekend will be family friendly, with arts activities for families of all shapes and sizes, encouraging everyone to join in.

Contributing artist Georgina Towler who will be exhibiting in C-Wing in Shepton Mallet Prison

The Somerset Art Weeks Guide is now available in print and online at: www.somersetartworks.org.uk

Meet Marc Allum –a familiar face

MARC Allum has been a well-known face on the BBC Antiques Roadshow for 25 years with his eclectic and broad knowledge stemming from an inherent and exacting interest across a wide spectrum of the art and antiques business. With over 30 years’ experience, his areas of expertise range from prehistory to modern design. Marc has been working with Dore & Rees during the last year on collection auctions. Of particular note was his “Guitars That Made History” auction in March, where a 1959 Gibson Les Paul “Burst” electric guitar sold for £171,600 with 100% of the lots selling for a total of £260,000.

Under Marc’s direction, Dore & Rees are launching an exciting new department Curious and Collectable. Marc brings the concept of this new department to life: “Collecting is part of the human condition and our propensity for accumulation is as old as time itself.

“The sophisticated nature of that trait has changed through history and has absorbed some of the greatest minds because the very nature of collecting has also advanced all aspects of science and philosophy through the ages.

“It is our inherent obsession with mortality, art, literature, religion and psychology that has driven man to some of his greatest creations and the ‘Curious and Collectable’ auction caters for that aspect of our psyche. Be it the mechanical, the musical, the cult of personality, ethnographic or even the macabre, there is something here to pique the curiosity of the collector in all of us.”

The first Curious and Collectable auction takes place on Wednesday, September 21st at 10.30am and includes a private collection of maritime models and tribal artefacts along with coins, antiquities, film posters, music and film ephemera, militaria and mechanical models and more. Viewing September 17th–20th at Dore & Rees auction salerooms in Frome. Visit www.doreandrees.com for more information.

Jewellery and Asian Art valuation days are being held on September 12th and 13th. Susan Rumfitt, Head of Jewellery, and Lee Young, Head of Asian Art, are in your area and available to provide valuations at your home or at Dore & Rees auction salerooms in Frome. Contact enquiries@doreandrees.com or call 01373 462257 to book your appointment.

Remembering the old WC&P railway

THISyear sees the 125th anniversary of the original opening of the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway between Weston-super-Mare and Clevedon and the 115th anniversary of its completion to Portishead.

The WC&PR was an unusual independent light railway linking the three North Somerset coastal towns. It opened in 1897 and closed in 1940. It was quaint and colourful and was operated on a shoestring, which gave it great character.

The railway ran through the streets in the centre of Clevedon. Because of its leisurely speed (25mph max) and numerous small halts it became the butt of jokes such as that there were cowcatchers fitted to the rear to protect against overtaking cattle!

But it was a much-loved railway amongst the locals.

To commemorate the anniversary, the WC&P Railway Group has organised an exhibition to be held on Sunday, October 2nd in the Parish Wharf Leisure Centre next to Portishead Marina. Original artefacts from the railway will be on display, together with some of the best model railways in the country.

There will be a total of 14 layouts, several being award winners, appearing in national magazines. No less than four superb model layouts of the WC&P Railway itself – Weston-super-Mare (Ashcombe Road), Clevedon, River Yeo Bridge, and Portishead – are being shown together for the first time. The Portishead one is brand new and having its first showing.

Colonel Stephens ran the WC&P Railway for many years and was known as the Light Railway King, managing a total of 16 light railways around the country. Several other layouts are models of his railways from around the country. One new small mystery layout is all about recycling carbon footprints!

A range of models will be on display –locomotives, coaches, wagons and even a Weston horse-bus. Slide shows of historic photos will be running all day and demonstrations of kit building will be given.

Eight societies will have stands including Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways, Colonel Stephens Society, Portishead Railway Group and the Lynton & Barnstaple Railway. There will be trade stands including local artist Stuart Booth with his superb oil paintings for sale.

Light refreshments will be available. There will be something for everyone at this unique exhibition and it’s an event not to be missed!

The Triangle, Clevedon

Details: www.wcprgroup.org.uk PAUL GREGORY Secretary WC&P Railway Group

Local history talks

PENSFORDLocal History Group is to re-commence its programme of talks in October after a break of several years.

Lyndsay Cooper, from the group, said: “We hope you will find the programme of interest as we need to generate as much interest and attendance as possible as well as boost membership which will in turn enable and secure the future of these talks.”

The first meeting in October will be held at All Saints’ in Publow. November and December will be at Pensford Memorial Hall.

The talks will be on the history of All Saints Church in Publow, "Mills Coal and Glass from Stanton Drew to Publow”, finishing with a talk entitled "Bedminster coal, blood sweat and tears".

Abbey bible

A DOUBLEpage from a bible written by monks at Glastonbury Abbey has returned to its home 800 years after it was written.

The historical artefact has been loaned to the abbey by Bristol University, which bought the double-sided page two years ago at auction.

The university has been using the fragment –measuring 197mm x 15mm –as a teaching resource.

It is described as a “strikingly beautiful” example of 13th century illumination.

The bible page remains on public display at Glastonbury Abbey until October 2nd