Four Shires

Julian Hartnoll sale at Holloways

Early 2012 sees Post War British art experiencing a resurgence of interest, with three Post War exhibitions taking place next year in London alone.
Iconic among the Post War artists are the Kitchen Sink realists, considered so important in the 1950s that they represented Great Britain at the 1956 Venice Biennale.

2012 also marks the 50th anniversary of Julian Hartnoll’s career as a dealer. He is taking the anniversary as a moment to rationalise his business and has decided to sell some of his considerable stock through Holloway’s of Banbury.
The sale will consist of 320 framed paintings and drawings and will reflect the areas that Julian has dealt in during his career – namely, Kitchen Sink Realists John Bratby RA, Edward Middleditch and Jack Smith; as well paintings and drawings by the 'Indian Picasso' Francis Newton Souza (1924-2002) and a group of Victorian paintings, drawings and watercolours.

The sale commences at 11.00am February 21st in Banbury.

Exhibition reveals Spencers hidden history of underwear

Banbury Museum’s new exhibition 'Revealed: The Underwear Revolution', uncovers the history of underwear.  It tells the hidden story of how underwear has evolved from the Anglo-Saxon linen smock to the modern memory foam bra. 

The exhibition celebrates corset making in Banbury with original documents, photographs and corsets from Spencer (Banbury) Limited.

Cherwell District Council's lead member for environment, Cllr James Macnamara, said; "For many who worked at the Britannia Road site this exhibition will bring back memories. Visitors can hear accounts of life in the Spencer factory during and after the Second World War, recorded earlier this year at the museum’s ‘Times Gone By’ reminiscence group.

Cllr Macnamara added: "The exhibition will appeal to Downton Abbey fans - it's a chance to find out what Lady Grantham might have worn!"

Also on show is a woven blue silk dress, made in 1750, that needed special underwear for support. Other exhibition highlights include a machine-made cage crinoline - a skirt-shaped structure, fashionable in the late nineteenth century. The contraption, which sports 19 spring steel wire hoops, was preserved by conservators before going on show. Children can try on a replica eighteenth century quilted petticoat or Tudor shirt as part of a dressing-up activity.

Sarah Morton, from Oxfordshire County Council, said: "Revealed focuses on how innovation and technology changed what we wore beneath our clothes. It tells a fascinating story and I think people may never think of underwear in the same way again."

Fellow conservator Sam van de Geer presented a behind-the-scenes view of the conservation and display of textiles last Wednesday evening as part of Banbury Museum’s new Museum Plus programme. For more details of this and other activities at the museum visit www.banburymuseum.org or phone 01295 753752.

The ‘Revealed’ exhibition is open until 18 February. Entry is free