Appendix a Collection Description
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Aberdeen City Council Museums and Galleries Collections Development Policy: Appendix A Appendix A: COLLECTIONS DEVELOPMENT PLAN: Collection Descriptions 1. REASON AND PURPOSE FOR COLLECTING Our collection connects Aberdeen’s unique past, present and future, inspiring and empowering our communities to love their own culture and sharing that pride with the wider world. For us connection is key to understanding and developing our collections: • Connecting audiences with objects, sites and stories • Connecting objects with people, places and processes • Connecting the past with the future of Aberdeen and its place in the world • Connecting the themes and specialisms within our collection We have exported inspirational people and products to the world; and brought the best of the world to our hearths. We will continue to create an inspirational collection that reflects our city of Aberdeen and its place in the world as a creative, industrial, social and artistic centre, raising the profile of Aberdeen and north east Scotland. 2. ART COLLECTION - OVERVIEW Around 1880, he embarked on a project to Even in its Victorian beginning, the founders collect artists’ portraits, supplying uniformly of Aberdeen Art Gallery looked to their sized canvases for the purpose. His wife contemporaries when choosing works to continued this collection after her husband’s collect. This interest in collecting recent work death. It contains a total of 93 artists’ has remained true to the intentions of its portraits. Besides bequeathing his impressive original benefactors throughout the Gallery’s collection to the city, Macdonald’s will also history. The collection has grown thanks to demanded that the art gallery building should purchases, gifts and bequests as well as be finished within three years of his death. external financial support. This accelerated the process so that the first phase of the building opened in 1885.The new Many of the early driving forces behind the chairman of the gallery committee, James creation of Aberdeen Art Gallery helped Murray, donated some grand Edwardian and enrich the collection through financial late Victorian works to the collection, bequests or by donating works they had including one of our star works, John Lavery’s collected privately. John Forbes White, a flour Tennis Party. A collection of plaster casts mill owner, was central to organising assembled at the start of the 20th century was exhibitions in the Gallery in the 1870s and intended to inspire granite carvers and 1880s. He was interested in the Realism of the students at Gray’s School of Art. Barbizon and The Hague schools, and supported Scottish artists who were Decorative arts and design have been of experimenting with this new style. He interest since the Gallery’s beginnings. A generously lent works from his private significant donation of lace (from one of collection, many of which eventually made White’s relatives) joined the textile collection their way into the collection. Granite in 1927, but the pursuit of decorative arts merchant and art collector Alexander truly blossomed in the mid-20th century, with Macdonald was instrumental in the creation a large donation from James Cromar Watt of Aberdeen’s Art Gallery. Sharing White’s including his own jewellery designs as well as admiration for their contemporaries, his collection of oriental pieces). The Macdonald only bought works by living artists momentum of a move initiated in the 1960s and strived to establish friendships with them. Page 1 of 15 Aberdeen City Council Museums and Galleries Collections Development Policy: Appendix A to acquire local metalwork endures to this indispensable support of organisations such day. as the National Fund for Acquisitions, the Art Fund, the Contemporary Art Society and the The Art Gallery also continued collecting fine Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation as well as art during the Second World War and the Friends of Aberdeen Art Gallery. immediately after. During this time, the art gallery benefited from sizeable donations of 3. DECORATIVE ART British modernist works through the War Artists’ Advisory Committee and a purchase of This is a diverse and comprehensive several works from the Sickert Trust. Collector collection covering all aspects of applied Rex Nan Kivell gave over 200 modern British and decorative art; design, craft, costume wood engravings in 1951. The Rt. Hon. and textiles. The prime collecting areas Gertrude Forbes-Sempill contributed a are ceramics, glass, metalwork, jewellery, collection of significant early 20th-century costume and textiles which includes landscapes in 1955. In 1959 we received two Scottish, British and International work. major donations of works by James McBey An extensive contemporary craft which have since allowed us to accumulate collection has been developed, and is now the world’s biggest archive of his work. recognised as one of the most important of its kind in Britain. Participation in the Further important donations followed, National Collecting Scheme for Scotland through the division of Joan Eardley’s works has enriched the collection with by her sister Pat Black and through the important acquisitions of contemporary collecting efforts of director Ian McKenzie- metalwork. Smith, who is also an abstract painter. The Scottish Arts Council Bequest from 1997 expanded our collection of contemporary art, INTERIOR DECORATION particularly prints. The same year, efforts to 3.1. CLOCKS - This section comprises of a build up a collection of Fraserburgh-born small collection of timepieces fashion designer Bill Gibb culminated in the including examples of 17th, 18th and purchase of an archive of his drawings with 19th century mantle, wall and the support of the National Fund for longcase clocks. Assistance from the Acquisitions, the Art Fund and the Friends of National Fund for Acquisitions has Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums. Several greatly enhanced the representation important donations enriched our ceramic of 20th century clocks in our holdings. collections in the 1990s, including the flat back figures from the Catherine Fleming 3.2. FURNITURE - Domestic, ecclesiastical Collection, or the Cochrane Collection of and civic furniture are represented porcelain which was acquired in in 1995 with within this section. the assistance of the National Art Collections 3.3. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS - a very Fund. small group of 18th, 19th and 20th century keyboard and stringed A donation of 10 contemporary artworks by instruments are represented within the Saatchi Gallery came in 2000. In 2012, the our holdings. extensive archive of three dimensional objects including sundial and books, prints and memorabilia by Scottish poet, writer, artist and gardener, Ian Hamilton Finlay was 3D DESIGN donated to the gallery by Joyce Laing (OBE). 3.4. CERAMICS Contemporary holdings of decorative and fine 3.4.1. Miscellaneous Domestic Ceramics - art have been enhanced through the National General domestic and commercial Collecting Scheme for Scotland and the wares of local significance are held within this section. Page 2 of 15 Aberdeen City Council Museums and Galleries Collections Development Policy: Appendix A collection of Venetian glassware and 3.4.2. European Ceramics - This section the Vaughan collection of Monart comprises representative examples and Vasart glass. There are groups of from the major continental European Art Nouveau and Art Deco porcelain factories, including glass and key examples of Meissen, Vienna Porcelain Factory, contemporary Scottish glass. Tournai and Sevres. 3.6. JEWELLERY 3.4.3. British Ceramics - This section 3.6.1. Jewellery - Jewellery includes a good comprises representative examples mixed media group of material from the major English porcelain including precious metals, resins and factories, a group of 1920s and 30s plastics, gemstones, cameos, British Studio Pottery presented by costume and mourning jewellery the Contemporary Art Society, the from 17th century to the present Robinson-Young Collection of Art day. There is strong collection of Pottery and the Cochrane Collection Victorian local and Scottish of British and Continental porcelain. jewellery, including clan badges, There is a small group of ceramics granite brooches and Scottish semi- designed by artists, which includes precious gemstone work. There is a work by Scottie Wilson, Eric small, but significant group of Arts Ravilious and Bruce McLean. and Crafts jewellery including Examples of British 20th century enamel and jewellery work by the factory wares have been acquired, Aberdeen born James Cromar Watt including pieces designed by Gordon (1862 – 1940). Aberdeen Art Gallery Mitchell Forsyth, Susie Cooper and & Museums now holds the best Clarice Cliff and key factories such as collection of designer jewellery in Shelley, Denby and Hornsea. The Scottish local authority museums, Scottish historic collection includes with recent acquisitions of examples of transfer print wares, outstanding work by international spongeware, hand-painted wares, makers. The jewellery collection work from the East Coast includes silversmith drawings and (particularly Wemyss) and Glasgow ephemera. potteries and Aberdeen’s Seaton Pottery. 3.6.2. Portable Accessories - This collection includes pill boxes, vinaigrettes, 3.5. GLASS scent bottles, hand mirrors and 3.5.1. Miscellaneous Domestic Glass - This other accessories. section includes examples of commercial glassware such as 3.6.3. Watches - We have a small lemonade and ink bottles, and collection of 19th and 20th century stained