On Thursday 26th May just under 40 members set off at 8.00am for our annual Summer Gallery Trip, this year to Bath. After a brief stop en route we arrived at the Holburne Gallery in time for coffee. This Grade 1 listed building is situated in attractive grounds a ten minute walk from the city centre along the elegant Pulteney Street. Alongside its own permanent collection of artefacts and paintings, at the time of our visit it was hosting a special exhibition featuring 28 paintings exhibited at the first Impressionist exhibition of 1874 in Paris. This selection of very significant paintings was accompanied by an excellent free audio guide. Elsewhere in the gallery a very small exhibition of early examples of work in pastel, caught the eye of some of us.
After lunch in the attractive restaurant area, most of us headed for the other main objective of the trip, the Victoria Gallery, where we were able to visit the Bath Society of Artists 111th Annual Exhibition. This offered an impressive and exciting range of current work for our enjoyment.
In addition some of us visited the prestigious ‘Beaux Arts’ commercial gallery where a fine collection of recent work by David Tress was on show. A rich feast for the gallery goer, on on a day when fine late Spring weather made walking around Bath a real delight! A scone or two later at 4.30pm, it was back on our coach for a smooth return journey to Shrewsbury.
Thanks again to Anne Linton for her excellent photographs, to Longmynd Coaches for organising our travel and to Dave, our driver, for ensuring our day went smoothly. And of course, to Alan Townsend, the man who makes these trips possible, for us all to enjoy.