Exhibition in the Hearse House and St Mark’s Church at Ninebanks
Two unique locations at Ninebanks in the beautiful West Allen valley are hosting an exhibition of creative artworks as part of the National Heritage Open Days Scheme. The exhibition will feature new work created by internationally exhibited artists in response to the locations of Isaac Holden's Hearse House and St. Mark's Church. The work will cover painting, sculpture, poetry, music, sound, and Victorian history.
John Garner, violinist, will be creating and performing an improvised response to the exhibited works. Sarah Pemberton, poet, will perform the poems she has written as a memorial to Isaac Holden and Jim Lloyd will perform a sound piece, Night Community, based on nocturnal recordings of creatures in the churchyard.
Melinda McGarry, a local artist who is curating the exhibition, said ‘this is a stunning and historic corner of the North Pennines and artists were thrilled to be asked to participate with the community to create this unique event. Isaac Holden was a philanthropist and secretly raised money by selling photos of himself to pay for a horse-driven hearse so that people could bury their loved ones with dignity. Sadly, anecdotally we know many people today cannot afford to hold funerals and are now commemorating their losses with just a memorial service’.
J.M. Strange, Professor of Victorian History at Durham University, who is also contributing to the exhibition, said ‘Isaac Holden was in the vanguard of social media; his self-portraits were a novelty of new technology, bringing the photograph into everyday circulation. Photography was Instagram for the Victorians.’
The exhibition also provides a valuable opportunity for displaying local history material. Marina Wallace, Church Warden for St Mark’s for over forty years said, ‘this is something different for us, we are excited to be able to host this exhibition and to feature local archive material in the community hall. Teas and home-made cakes will also be available using our newly refurbished kitchen.’
The participants include;
Professor Christopher Jones, Fine Art, Newcastle University
Bridget Kennedy, PhD candidate, Goldsmiths; Lecturer, Newcastle University
Melinda McGarry, PhD candidate, Newcastle University
Martina Schmeucker, PhD candidate, Newcastle University
Jim Lloyd, PhD candidate, Newcastle University
Elizabeth Oughton, MA candidate, Newcastle University
Professor J.M. Strange, Victorian History, Durham University
Helen Shaddock, Artist
Sarah Pemberton, Poet and Ecologist
Clare Lynn, Poet and Educator
Olivia Irvine, Painter and Fresco Artist
John Garner, PhD candidate, Newcastle University