Myth of the North
The curator, Brian, told us that this exhibition had been one of the most successful they had launched.
There were various sections built as sets, depicting the many varied aspects of the North and we started by looking at photographs and paintings, showing the heavily industrialised landscapes with chimneys, houses, churches, rivers and bridges. One of the paintings by
Isaacs was so detailed, that it could be used as a reference map of the period and area.
We moved on to another set, with the kind help of the gallery staff carrying our seats for us, which depicted a sitting room, decked out with 50's furniture. In one corner an early tiny T.V. set had been rigged up to play a very early recording of Coronation Street, which has influenced the country's conception of life in the North.
There was another corner with a kitchen unit in blue and yellow, which many of our party recognised as having been in their family home. The sitting room area had a leatherette settee and an armchair, which was obviously "father's chair" and a small table with a
doily and framed photograph.
The Co-op Shop window contained brands of items I had never heard of. About the only items I knew were 99 Tea and Co-op Biscuits.
We moved on to a works locker room. with a table containing mugs and a tea caddy with a
big canteen metal teapot. There was a works
notice board, sink, lockers and a
dispenser on the wall for coffee or sugar or tea.
The next visit was to Blackpool, with the lights and illuminated displays. Some saucy Blackpool postcards were in a rack, the selection must have been censored as they were mildly rude. A photo showed the beach packed with people, all fully dressed with people sitting in deck chairs and youngsters just lying on the sand with bare feet.
Once again, the Gallery staff looked after us with drinks and biscuits. As I am not overly fond of squashed fly cookies, this time I can't give the usual gushing reference to "yummy treats". Never mind, better luck next time.
Our thanks to Mary for organising this visit at such short notice and to Ann for her usual wonderful audio descriptions. There was so much to see, that Ann was hard pressed to keep up with everything that was happening. The Gallery staff ensured that we all had seats and helped to round us all up when it was time to go.
A superb visit and our sincere thanks to all involved.
Unfortunately Ken is not here to remind me of the things I missed but hopefully will add his thoughts next week.
Posted by Elaine.
There were a couple of transistor radios in the sets, an old wind up
gramophone player, some records and one section showed the washing hanging on lines and photographs of houses with a sink and one cold water tap. The paintings and photos showed the men with flat caps and boots.
