Surrey Hills: Then And Now Exhibition
Tuesday, 24th June 2008
Celebrating 50 years as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
At Guildford House Gallery from 16 August 2008 to 13 September 2008
Old black and white photographs, up to date colour photographs, landscape paintings from the Guildford Borough Art Collection, and wide landscape photographs by John Miller, will form an exhibition that celebrates Surrey Hills: Then and Now – 50 years as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) from 16 August to 13 September 2008.
The celebration also coincides with the European Year of Food and Farming, and to acknowledge this, the Gallery Café at Guildford House will be serving dishes using local produce on its specials menu throughout the exhibition.
The Surrey Hills AONB was one of the first landscapes to be designated an AONB in 1958. It is one of 36 nationally protected landscapes in England, and has equal landscape status and protection as a National Park. Over a quarter of the area is accessible for open recreation. It is also one of the most wooded areas in the country, with 40% woodland cover, in a landscape that also includes extensive areas of farmland, heath land, down land and commons. Surrey Hills is wholly contained within London’s Metropolitan Green Belt and attracts over 10 million visitors each year. The Surrey Hills AONB stretches across a quarter of the county of Surrey and includes the chalk slopes of the North Downs from Farnham in the west to Oxted in the east and extends south to the deeply wooded Greensand Hills which rise in Haslemere.
Surrey Hills Patron, Penelope Keith said:
“I am delighted to be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Surrey Hills AONB. Over the five years for which I have been patron of the Surrey Hills, I have worked to raise awareness of a landscape that has inspired some of the country’s greatest artists and writers, including George Eliot, John Keats, and Ralph Vaughan Williams. You leave London and you are very quickly in deep countryside. People don’t realise they have such amazing landscapes on their doorstep. Our countryside is something we have to guard very jealously indeed and I hope to see the Surrey Hills AONB continuing to protect his wonderful part of England well into the future”
The inspiration artists have found in the Surrey Hills over the years will be evident in the exhibition. Paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries, including The Weald of Surrey by Walter Wallor Caffyn from 1880, and A Lane at Albury by Charles Passey will be on display, as well as a number of watercolours by Henry James Sage, and the typical A Surrey Cottage by Helen Allingham. Archive black and white photographs taken approximately 50 years ago, record life in Surrey, and farming in the area, as well as a nostalgic look at transport and farming implements. Up to date photographs will also be on display, following a recent county wide competition to capture Surrey Hills AONB today. Stunning panoramic landscapes by renowned photographer John Miller will be shown, together with farming artefacts on loan from local museums. The exhibition will encourage visitors to re-live the past, treasure the present, and become involved in the future of the area.
The exhibition is supported by a range of activities and events for all ages. Wednesday 20 August at 10.30am sees popular local artist, Angela Lawrence lead a workshop for children aged 8-12 years to produce a giant landscape with pop-up perspective which will become part of the exhibition. Matthew Alexander is giving a free lunchtime talk on Thursday 21 August on ‘Tales of Life in the Surrey Hills’.
There is a welcome return to Guildford House Gallery by Storyteller Janet Dowling on Tuesday 26 August from 2pm to 3.30pm for a family storytelling workshop, and a Tour of the exhibition for adults with Rob Fairbanks of Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty team on Thursday 28 August at 1pm.
Finally, on Wednesday 10 September at 1pm, Charles Brooking will give a talk including an actual display of artefacts on Saving Architectural Artefacts from the Surrey Hills. The display will remain in place until Saturday 13 September, the final day of the exhibition, which also coincides with Heritage Open Day.
All the events are free, but spaces are limited, as always; early booking is essential. Booking can be made by phone to 01483 444742 or online at www.guildfordhouse.co.uk, or in person in the Gallery Shop. Further information on this exhibition and the Gallery programme for the rest of 2008 can also be found on the website.