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The Lady with the 5 o’clock shadow
Dr Amanda Draper, Curator of Art & Exhibitions writes …\nWhen I first arrived at the VG&M in January 2018 there was one painting in the building that hypnotised me. It had come into the collection in 2000 with no known title and had been descriptively labelled as ‘Portrait of a woman wearing a blue silk dress holding a jasmine flower’ by unknown artist. But there was an elephant in the room. The lower half of the sitter’s face, with its amiable if slightly pensive expression, appeared to be covered by a 5 o’clock shadow. They looked in distinct need of a close shave. What was the story here?
Posted on: 3 September 2020
A Fossil For Friday -The Oldest Object in the Collection
We are almost certain that this footprint made by ‘Beasley’s type D2 Rhynchosaurides Rectipes’ which has been dated as over 240,000,000 years old, is the object that most accurately fits this week’s blog description.
Posted on: 27 August 2020
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The Mystery of the Floating Hand
Amanda Draper, Curator of Art & Exhibition writes …\nAs a curator who looks after art collections, one of my favourite things is working with the specialist conservators who restore and revive artefacts for us. Their technical and artistic skills are phenomenal and they can completely transform an artwork that most of us would have thought beyond repair. And just sometimes, simply cleaning a painting can reveal unexpected wonders. And so it was with The Turkish Ambassador.
Posted on: 21 August 2020
75th Anniversary of VJ Day Liverpool 2020, Connections and Reflections.
This Saturday the 15th of August is 75th anniversary of the Victory Over Japan Day, VJ Day, marking both the surrender of Japan and the end of the Second World War. The surrender effectively ended the war and allowed British soldiers, who had been fighting in Burma and those held captive across southeast Asia and the Far East, to return home. At least 20,000 of these men (as well as hundreds of civilian internees) disembarked in Liverpool between 8 October and the end of December that year. The remainder either returned via Southampton or, in the case of a few, flew back and were the first to arrive home during September. \n
Posted on: 14 August 2020
Hero to Zero
Dr Amanda Draper, Curator of Art & Exhibitions writes …\n\nIf working in a museum has taught me anything, it’s that history has different narratives which can change over time and one object can tell many stories. And so it is with this jug. It was created to celebrate military campaigns led by Colonel Banastre Tarleton, considered a hero in the 1780s. But time has reviewed Colonel Tarleton, his military career, his views on slavery and even his love life, and today he is perceived very differently. Let’s see how the jug tells these tales.
Posted on: 31 July 2020
The Way of the Gull
It’s the start of National Marine week tomorrow. In celebration, we share the coastal landscapes of Dr Margery Knight (1889 - 1973). Five of Knight’s paintings are in the VG&M collection, bequeathed in 2003 by her companion, Miss Rose McKenna. Last month, Knight’s paintings inspired the VG&M relaxed concert, 'Time was away and somewhere else'. We reached out to Louise Ashcroft, who wrote and performed the concert, to share insights. Over to you, Louise…
Posted on: 24 July 2020
The University Ceremonial Mace
When you think of graduation the first thing that will spring to mind is undoubtedly the hard work you’ve put in over the course of your studies. You may also conjure up images of the raised mortar boards in celebration, the ceremony, speeches and procession and no doubt the nerves prior to stepping up onto the stage willing yourself not to trip! The likelihood of remembering the University mace is probably quite slim.\n
Posted on: 17 July 2020
Made You Look
This peculiar looking ceramic has always intrigued me ever since I started working here at the VG&M. At first glance I thought it was a ceramic by world famous artist Pablo Picasso whose ceramics were often influenced by Latin American and pre-Columbian forms but on closer inspection it was not.
Posted on: 10 July 2020
Bookplate for Christabel A. Frampton
Amanda Draper, Curator of Art & Exhibition writes …\n\nRobert Anning Bell RA (1863-1993) was an influential artist of the Arts and Crafts Movement with links to the University of Liverpool. His artistic range was wide but somehow he has become best known for small, very personal artworks which are almost always hidden from view: the bookplate.
Posted on: 3 July 2020
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The Lady with the 5 o’clock shadow
Dr Amanda Draper, Curator of Art & Exhibitions writes … When I first arrived at the VG&M in January 2018 there was one painting in the building that hypnotised me. It had come into the collection in 2000 with no known title and had been descriptively labelled as ‘Portrait of a woman wearing a blue silk dress holding a jasmine flower’ by unknown artist. But there was an elephant in the room. The lower half of the sitter’s face, with its amiable if slightly pensive expression, appeared to be covered by a 5 o’clock shadow. They looked in distinct need of a close shave. What was the story here?
Posted on: 3 September 2020
