Early Vintage

In August, the Friends marked a bustling inaugural year with our first AGM, kindly hosted at the Haworth by Gallery Manager Yvonne Robbins. Friends’ Chair Alison Phelan was able to report  a very strong first year, in particular the excellent research projects that have helped bring to life the stories of the Haworth family and their retainers, as well as the history and heritage of the surrounding area of Baxenden.

The Friends have made huge strides in researching and archiving the history of the house, and park and its personnel
The Friends have enjoyed a successful year of fundraising events and member drives in addition to our tremendous heritage events. Trustees, Roger Cunliffe, Jean Emmett and Harry Emmett, have been especially active,  bringing their brilliant insights and research to bear in the Haworth’s archives and presenting their findings so entertainingly in these  events. A number of our members have also donated generously of their time, effort and electrical appliances in supporting our efforts : ) Amazing art works too! And our hardworking Chair has kept all the group’s activities on track with grace and good humour.

 

Proud parents see Haworth Through the Lens

Other local community projects have included the wonderfully inspiring collaboration, Haworth Through the Lens,  with The Hollins’ CTC initiative, an association we hope to pursue with future projects. Similarly, we look forward to working further with the extensive photographic archive so painstakingly created by talented Blackburn College photography degree student Peter Graham.

Friends indeed!

Forthcoming Friends events at the Haworth will include a heritage afternoon, Below Stairs and Beyond the Park, on September 23rd and a Tombola and Member Drive on December 16th. The Friends will also offer Tiffany-related crafting at Accrington Library as part of a national  Fun Palace event for children on October 6th. More details of all these events to follow. Get those diaries out!

The eagle-eyed among you may have noticed a slight name change to Friends of Haworth Art Gallery. The shift from Friends of Haworth Art Gallery defers to the widespread use of the ‘gallery’ epithet and we hope will help us to be more identifiable.

The Friends were founded to help promote the cultural heritage of the house and park, the Art Gallery and the Tiffany collection in particular and to emphasise the significance of these in the broader cultural landscape. We are also delighted to help promote the activities of other aspects of the Haworth complex, including the Stable Block and Motor House and the Haworth Artists’ Network, which have all leapt out of the starting block since their own recent launches.

Stable Block and Motor House with Artists’ Studios and Art Garden

Thanks to management at Haworth Art Gallery for their encouragement and support throughout the year and to the staff and volunteers, as well as the management and staff of the Gallery Kitchen, who often generously lend their support.

If you’re interested in arts and culture or have a passion for local history and heritage and are curious about what we do, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Be it a casual interest in attending one of our events or a desire to get involved as a member, we’d love to hear from you. We’re a friendly and dedicated group and can offer opportunities for involvement in any number of ways. However great or small your interest, you can reach us at HaworthAccrington@gmail.com. And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @HaworthAcc.