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THE ATTINGHAM TRUST for the study of HISTORIC houses and collections ISSUE 2016 NEWSLETTER 14 Chairman’s Foreword John Lewis am delighted to report that we had will be running the Study Programme encouraging every member to keep Iseventeen nationalities from four to Rome and Naples in 2017. We in touch and help spread the word continents attending our five courses warmly thank him for his past five years about the international importance this year thanks to the wide-spread in the role. He has been replaced by of our courses during which lasting support received from across the David Adshead, formerly head curator professional and personal friendships world. In particular, The Attingham of the National Trust, whom we are are made. Support is important Trust is indebted to the tremendous very pleased to welcome as part of our on the home front too. Yet another assistance of the American Friends close-knit team. change to the Secretary of State of Attingham in recruiting and funding for Culture, Media & Sport means US scholars, and to all the alumni With the current unsettled political losing someone who was extremely ambassadors appointed in individual climate creating uncertain futures, knowledgeable. It is hoped that the countries who help with distribution it is essential that bodies like The new incumbent will take a similar and stimulating interest. Attingham Trust maintain and interest in the Arts and defend our extend their global reach with corner at a time when expenditure Thanks also go to the Trust’s staff institutions and individuals. Annabel on the Arts is under threat. At least for their efforts and dedication. Westman in her welcome to the for our friends abroad, the drop in the Andrew Moore has stepped down as members of the Summer School value of sterling will make our courses co-director of the Summer School and in July emphasised this message, more affordable. American Friends of Attingham Sheila ffolliott • AFA President n my role as President of the nonprofit entities to organize officially welcome). Because so many alumni IAmerican Friends of Attingham and collect contributions and the come to New York in January for (AFA), I have recently had the AFA became one of many similar the Winter Antiques Show, we host pleasure of participating in two organizations which help support a Midwinter Reunion at a special Study Programs and making three educational and cultural institutions location. To help raise money, we visits to the Summer School. On worldwide. The AFA continues to sell tickets for an annual benefit these occasions I am often asked recruit the best potential American lecture and reception. Speakers about the AFA. As alumni groups members for The Attingham Trust have included Dame Rosalind are forming in other countries, (AT) courses, but our volunteers do Savill, Sir Hugh Roberts, and Giles I’d like to take this opportunity to much more for our over 1,300 living Waterfield. Alumni in Boston, describe what we do in the hope alumni. Taking advantage of the Washington, DC, Philadelphia, that other alumni will likewise find professional positions our alumni and San Francisco, organize local ways to keep in touch. We love hold, we plan activities, following gatherings in the Attingham spirit, getting together. the pattern of AT courses, including and some individual classes gather visits to special sites in the New for reunions. For more information, Three American alumni organized York area, and one annual domestic please visit the AFA website and a Friends group in 1962 to help study trip (a long weekend). In consult our newsletters www. recruit students and raise money recent years we have visited St. americanfriendsofattingham.org. for scholarship assistance for those Louis, Texas, Boston and, in 2017, Our network extends throughout the who were otherwise unable to we’ll visit New Orleans (as space United States and if you plan a trip attend the courses. U.S. law permits permits, any Attingham alumnus is our way, please be in touch! 1 COMMENTARY Jonathan Marsden ttingham Park was the first Acountry house I really got to know well. I lived in a rather sparsely furnished flat at the top of the house during the winter of 1982-3, whilst working for the National Trust on the papers of William Noel Hill, 3rd Lord Berwick, cycling daily along the busy A5 to and from the County Record Office in Shrewsbury. Another part of the house was let to Concord College, a provider of residential English language courses. During the time I was living there, my The author (centre) performing the Attingham Rap with Robert Wenley (left) and neighbours in the house were a large Richard Griffiths (Attingham Summer School 1993). detachment of Iraqi air force pilots, ‘D.O.’ (desirable object) for possible armour quickly become apparent which did not seem as odd before inclusion, and usually leaving behind to the expert curator of prints, and the first Gulf War as it does now. a selection of personal effects – it is guaranteed that even those cameras, notebooks; once more who considered themselves most My assignment on the Hill papers seriously a wallet and passport. resolutely averse to the charms had been set by Belinda Cousens, Back at base in London Gervase of Sèvres porcelain will find their who worked as Assistant Historic composed winningly persuasive defences undone in the course Buildings Representative for the letters to owners and the National of an hour with Rosalind Savill National Trust, and to whom I Gallery’s designers contrived and a line-up of The Queen’s shall always be grateful for having measured drawings of every object finest vases. responded to one of the many in its intended purpose-built setting. letters I had written in search of This was an early and intense Those of us lucky enough to voluntary work. It was at Attingham exposure to something I have never work with the Royal Collection are that I first met Gervase Jackson- stopped thinking about, which is reminded every day of this lesson Stops, the Trust’s Architectural how objects relate to one another, by the ever-present inspiration Adviser. Giles Waterfield (Director and how we regard them differently of Leonardo da Vinci. The ten of Royal Collection Studies since in the setting of a museum display drawings from the Collection which its inauguration twenty-one years or ‘in the wild’; in their ‘natural are currently touring the UK and ago), had kindly tipped me off that habitats’. Ireland reveal one man’s search Gervase was looking for an assistant for understanding of the human to work on the ambitious exhibition Each year I try to explain to the figure; the circulation of the blood; planned for the National Gallery of delegates on Royal Collection the effects of fluvial erosion; the Art in Washington, The Treasure Studies that what sets the Royal mechanics of bronze casting; the Houses of Britain, which took place Collection apart from most other ways in which movement and not in the winter of 1985-6. It would be comparable collections is that merely static form define the essence hard to imagine a more privileged or for the most part, it remains ‘in of different types of animals (in this exciting introduction to the country the wild’, and the same is true case cats and infant humans), or house, which the organisers rightly of the country house collections the structure of berries and seeds. proclaimed as a uniquely British which are studied on the Summer Leonardo teaches us to Be Curious. contribution to European culture. As School. Another invaluable aspect Gervase juggled his role as curator of all the Attingham programmes Long Live Attingham ! of the exhibition with the major is serendipity. Many of the NT acquisitions of Canons Ashby participants have reached the Jonathan Marsden is Director, and Calke Abbey, we transected point in their careers when they Royal Collection Trust and the country at high speed (he have been able to specialise at Surveyor of The Queen’s Works was a terrifying driver), usually an advanced level in a particular of Art. He worked as a Historic arriving hours late thanks to utterly field. Attingham provides the Buildings Representative for the unfeasible timetables, risking arrest specialist with an opportunity to National Trust from 1986 to 1996. by room guardians every time our peer over the garden fence. Thus, He serves on the Council of the noisy Polaroid camera captured a the rewards of studying silver or Attingham Trust. 2 Attingham Trust Newsletter 2016 • Number 14 THE LONDON HOUSE COURSE 19th – 25th April 2016 • Giles Waterfield, Director he seven-day programme was Academy. A completely new day enough to receive generous Torganised both chronologically was organised by Andrew Saint hospitality and enjoyed dinners at the and thematically, with areas of considering the development of houses of Katharine Goodison and study developing from Mediaeval public and private housing and Sarah Nichols. and Tudor through Restoration notably housing estates in the and Eighteenth Century on to the twentieth century. Other new visits Working on the basis of previous Aristocratic House; and then from included a fascinating house in experience, the programme was Artists’ Houses through Public and Putney known as the Cor-Ten House able to offer a condensed but Private Housing in the twentieth and a converted warehouse in nevertheless full and revealing study century to the Architect’s House. Queensway. Many of the successful of the development of the London Whilst the programme resembled previous visits were retained. house. Among the twenty-five that of previous years, there were participants drawn from Australia, many new visits and events.

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