Guildford House Gallery

03/11/2021

We’re busy at Guildford House Gallery preparing the installation of the '100 Years of Remembrance' exhibtion with Surrey Infantry Collection, opening this Saturday.

11.30am, free entry

Find out more👉 https://orlo.uk/A5aFF

16/07/2021

'Georgian Women’ our new online exhibition of portraits by renowned Guildford-born artist, John Russell RA is now live.

It provides opportunity to enjoy the skills of one of Britain’s most successful 18th century pastellists.

Find out more 👉 'https://www.guildford.gov.uk/article/25652/New-online-exhibition-Georgian-Women-Portraits-by-Guildfordian-John-Russell-RA

18/03/2021

In 1871 decked itself in flags and bunting. Our records say it was to celebrate the Bath and West of England Show. This photograph shows dressed for a party, ready for the big agricultural show to arrive.
Look at the buildings on the right. The one displaying the large Union Flag is the White Lion Hotel. Can you see the plaster lion above the door? The building was demolished in 1957 and a Woolworths was built on the site. This was then replaced in 1970 by the White Lion Walk shopping centre.

17/03/2021

The is one of the best loved buildings on . This photograph was taken by Thomas A Wilkie (FRPS AIBP) in the 1960s. His photographs of life in Guildford are now part of Heritage Service’s collections.
In times the Guildhall was where the mayor and corporation met to manage the business of the borough. It was a court of law until 1986, when the Guildford Crown Court opened. The Courtroom at the Guildhall still contains the judges’ bench and prisoners’ dock.
Additions to the building have been made over the centuries. The Tudor hall was extended in 1589 when Queen Elizabeth I visited, and in 1683 the first floor, Council Chamber and clock were added.

16/03/2021

Do you recognise this well known building on ? It’s near Jeffries Passage, opposite Holy Trinity Church. That’s right, it's Guildford House, but seen here when it was home to Mr Bull’s saddlers and tent-making business over a hundred years ago.
The House, built in 1660, has had many uses over the centuries. It’s been a family home, a place of work, and opened as a shop in 1844. From 1850 to 1878 Frank Apted ran his brush and turnery business here, until merging with Mr Bull’s business. Bull's closed in 1914 and until 1928 the building was a stationer's and bookshop.
During 1927 to 1928 Simpson's, who ran a drapery business next door on the site of the Crown Inn, extended their business, redecorated the house, and opened it as a carpet department. From 1929 to 1956, 25 High Street was a restaurant, first known as Lambert's Tea Room and Grill Room, and later as Nuthall's Café, still well remembered in Guildford. The house opened as Guildford House Gallery in 1959.

10/02/2021

Today as part of we celebrate our film about the history of Guildford House Gallery. This was a joint project between a photography student from Activate Learn Guildford College, heritage staff and other volunteers. Volunteering can be good for your .
The film tells the fascinating history of which is over 350 years old. It has been a family home, brush shop, bookseller’s, and tearoom, as well as an art gallery. Watch the film to find out more https://www.guildford.gov.uk/Guildfordhousehistory

02/02/2021

For we would like to share this short History of Guildford with you! This handwritten text was written to accompany a sketch drawn by John Russell RA. The page is glued into a scrapbook, which was put together in the late 1700s.
Russell writes about how the town came into existence and its current situation. The ‘town is governed by a mayor, aldermen and bailiffs – market on Saturday’. The picture is copied from a magazine. It has been argued that this scrapbook, which contains many landscape drawings of Guildford and a sketch of George Abbott, was the basis for Samuel Russell’s ‘History of Guildford’, which was published in the early 1800s.
Check out our blog for more information about this scrapbook on www.guildford.gov.uk/sketchbookpart1

17/12/2020

Just a few Christmas gifts remaining now in our Brewhouse Gift Shop. We are open Monday to Saturday 10:30am until 3:30pm and can ensure your shopping experience will be tier 3 Covid secure. Guildford Town Past & PresentExperience GuildfordGUILDFORD MATTERSVisit SurreyGuildford GossipWe love SurreyChristmas 2020Guildford Present & FutureVisit Guildford

14/12/2020

We would like to advise you all of our operating hours over the Christmas and New Year period. We would also like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a safe New Year.

11/12/2020

The final stop on our journey this week is this beautiful watercolour ‘Chilworth Under Snow’ by Juliet Renny. The snow-covered fields in the foreground are almost the same colour as the pale winter sky, separated only by the buildings of Chilworth village nestled in-between. It evokes a quiet and calming . Renny trained at the Guildford School of Art and is a member of Guildford Art Society and has often exhibited and held workshops at Guildford House Gallery.

Image: Chilworth Under Snow, Juliet Renny, Mid-20th century © The artist

10/12/2020

Today we venture even further into winter with Roy Stedman’s work ‘Frosty Morning Albury Park’. In this you can almost feel the icy chill captured in the misty sky and frost covered grass. Albury old church can be seen in the background, left behind when the village was moved by the landowner. Stedman is a self-taught local artist who throughout his life belonged to several local art societies, and painted mainly local landscapes, in oil and watercolour.

Iamge: Frosty Morning Albury Park, Roy Stedman (b.1933), Late 20th century © The artist

09/12/2020

The third stop on our journey is ‘Winters Walk’ by Kathleen Caddick. Caddick’s work often includes winter trees, weathered buildings, bleached grasses and snow. The mood in ‘Winters Walk’ is one of stillness and tranquillity. When asked why she does not put leaves on the trees or make the grass green or the sky blue, Kathleen replied 'I etch, draw or paint only things that excite me. I still delight as I did as a child in the first fall of snow, the pattern or trees silhouetted against the evening sky, the subtle colours of winter and the texture of old buildings, walls, breakwaters and stones. It is just a love of the countryside as I see it.'
Image: Winters Walk, Kathleen Caddick, Mid-20th century
©The artist

08/12/2020

Timeline photos

Today’s is ‘Winter Scene’ by Edward Wesson. Using watercolours, Wesson creates a soft view of winter trees. Watercolour paints are great for colour mixing, as pigments can easily bleed into each other. Wesson has used a combination of a dry and wet wash in his painting to achieve a feathery appearance that adds depth and tone to the landscape. The result is a crisp forest painting that creates a delicate view of a wintery landscape.

Image: Winter Scene, Edward Wesson (1910 – 1983)
Late 20th century © The artist's estate

07/12/2020

The arrival of winter gives us the perfect opportunity to embrace the crisp mornings by exploring the wintery landscapes in our Art Collection this week.
The first stop on our journey is Ronald Smoothey’s oil painting ‘Winter Landscape’. It is based on a river scene viewed from his house near St. Catherine's. Smoothey uses abstract shapes and colours to depict trees in a landscape with a low winter sun. He creates his winter scene by applying oil paint onto canvas with a palette knife, creating sharp lines that produce a thick textural surface known as "impasto".

Image: Winter Landscape, Ronald Smoothey (1913–1996)
1960 © The copyright holder

02/12/2020

The team at the Brew House gift shop are ready to welcome you safely back and they are now open! So take a break from the high street and pay us a visit today. You will find us and our unique Christmas gifts in the Courtyard at Guildford House Gallery. Experience Guildford Guildford Town Past & Present Guildford Gossip GUILDFORD MATTERS Visit Surrey Visit Guildford

01/12/2020

Following the latest government update we are pleased to announce that Guildford House will be open from Wednesday 2 December 2020 between the times of 10:30am to 3:30pm.

This is your opportunity to visit our Tourist Office Visit Guildford to discover What's On!. Have a bite to eat in the Gallery cafe or pick up some wonderful presents in the Brewhouse Gift Shop. The gallery will remain closed though whilst we continue to work on improvements.

We are also please to announced that we are certified Covid secure by Visit England's Good To Go scheme.

We look forward to welcoming you all back safely from tomorrow.

Guildford Borough Council Experience Guildford Visit Surrey Guildford Town Past & Present Guildford Gossip Guildford Present & Future We love Surrey Christmas 2020

19/11/2020

An opportunity not to be missed.

We have the perfect Xmas gift idea for you!

Treat a loved one to to one of our fabulous afternoon teas by gifting them one of our vouchers.

Please email [email protected] or message us on here for further details.

22/10/2020

What are your plans for this year’s challenge?
Have you ever tried observational drawing? This is a drawing from life and not from a photograph or your imagination. The three types of observational drawing are:
1. Still Life, drawing non-moving objects
2. Contour drawing, observing and highlighting the edges of figures or objects that you are looking at.
3. Blind Contour drawing, created by observing a subject but not looking at the paper while you draw.
Here we have an example of an observational drawing by an unknown artist from our collection. The artist is focusing on the contours of the staircase as well as the background panelling.
Can you recognise these stairs?
You can read more about this magnificent interior here: https://www.guildford.gov.uk/Guildfordhousehistory

21/10/2020

is all about giving drawing a go. Just 15 minutes of drawing can improve your . Take inspiration from a previous artist in residence at Guildford House Gallery, Mervyn Charlton. He said ‘doodling is a good place to start a painting’. He made abstract marks and scribbles and then looked to see what images appeared and developed these. http://www2.guildford.gov.uk/boroughcollection/artist/37
Image © Mervyn Charlton

20/10/2020

Photos from Guildford's Heritage's post

31/08/2020

Take a break from the high street and visit our Cafe.

27/08/2020

Gallery Cafe is now open 🙌😊🙌, see below for all the details.

We Are Finally Open 🙌😊🙌

We’ve Got Measures In Place To Keep Everyone Safe, So Please Pop In We’ve Missed You All 😊

25/08/2020

Have you been using the scheme? Find a restaurant near you that’s registered for the scheme here: https://bit.ly/3hTTzLa
is lucky to have many places to eat and buy food in Chapel Street, High Street, North Street or Jeffries passage! Here is an image of Guildford House Gallery used as a restaurant, yes our gallery used to be a restaurant! From 1929 to 1956, 25 High Street was a restaurant first known as Lambert’s tea Room and Grill Room, and later as Nuthall’s Café, still well remembered by local residents.

20/08/2020

This week is and this photo, taken around c1900, is by an unknown photographer. It shows The Guildhall, Guildford standing proud on Guildford High Street.
Agree or disagree, but for us this is undoubtedly one of the most recognisable symbols of !
Built in around 1550 its history is one of extremes. In the past it was used as a court, handing out punishments to offenders. Today it is less frightening and hosts mayoral functions and venue hire events. Explore the history behind this iconic building here: https://www.guildford.gov.uk/historyofguildhall

16/07/2020

Part 2 of John Russell's scrapbook blog is out now!
Could this well-loved scrapbook be the gift that keeps on giving?
Read more here:
https://www.guildford.gov.uk/sketchbookpart2
This blog will explore the discoveries we have made about this object and share some of its many secrets...!

01/07/2020

Photos from Guildford's Heritage's post

17/06/2020

The last few months have been stressful for many. Why not take a relaxing bath this with a bath bag. We’ve taken inspiration from Mrs Childe, who lived at Guildford House Gallery over 350 years ago. We’re sure she made medicines and beauty products using plants from the garden. Take a square of muslin or any thin cotton material. Place a spoonful of one of the following highly scented flowers in the square. Choose from lavender to aid sleep, roses to uplift spirits or chamomile for anxiety. Add a spoonful of oats to clean your skin. Pull up the corners of the square and tie with a ribbon. Run under warm water and enjoy your bath.

Of course do check before using any of the ingredients if you are pregnant, breast feeding, taking any medicines, have any health issues, allergies or skin complaints.

10/06/2020

Many of us found a daily walk in the a real help for our during lockdown and are delighted to get out more. But even if you can’t research shows that just looking at a picture of a green space can be soothing. Shall we look at it together?

Find a quiet spot and make yourself comfortable. Now look at the painting slowly, moving round the edge of the pond taking in the undulating heights of the surrounding trees and farm buildings. Focus on the light cloud cover in the sky trapping the earth’s heat below. Come down to the pond with the detail of the figure in the punt with his sleeves rolled up. Is he fishing perhaps? Imagine the sound of the ripples of the water against the boat.

Could it be the quacking of ducks or the honking of geese that you can hear? Immerse yourself in the colours and shapes reflected in the water. Finally take in the wild rose which this picture is named after and imagine their scent.

Learn more about this painting on our website: http://www2.guildford.gov.uk/BoroughCollection/artist/198

08/06/2020

Guildford's Heritage Services () • Instagram photos and videos

Guildford's Heritage Services () • Instagram photos and videos

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03/06/2020

Photos from Guildford's Heritage's post

01/06/2020

This week marks national ….
Now, more than ever, are playing a vital role in supporting communities in and accross the country.

We at Guildford Heritage would love to hear about your volunteering during these unprecedented times.
Perhaps you have volunteered with your local food bank or church, or have volunteered at a ‘scrub hub’ to stitch scrubs for the ? If you have photographs, stories or anything else you would like to share please post below or send to [email protected]

Look out for posts prepared by our own volunteers coming out throughout this week….

13/05/2020

The Friends of Guildford House

The Friends of Guildford House

We are a charity to promote Guildford House Gallery and art projects in Guildford

07/05/2020

Many of our keyworkers during still depend on public transport just as they did in the .

took on roles such as bus drivers or, like this woman, as bus conductors (or ‘conductorettes’) collecting the fares. A nickname for them was ‘clippies’.

The buses could be very crowded as there were far fewer buses running as so many were used to transport the soldiers to and , being driven by their regular male drivers. With fewer buses running our town and city streets became much quieter just as they are today during the lockdown.

06/05/2020

How to make VE Day bunting

How to make VE Day bunting

Find out how you can keep children and young people entertained by creating VE Day bunting.

05/05/2020

Photos from Guildford's Heritage's post