Wally Closes

At our outing to the People’s Palace in Glasgow, Linda Arthur told us about wally closes and wally tiles in the city. Wally refers to the clay used to make the tiles and she took us through their manufacture and decoration in a colourful and comprehensive lecture. What a rich heritage in Glasgow!  We are grateful to the People’s Palace for their hospitality.

© Linda Arthur 

Vermeer and his Contemporaries

Dr Colin Bailey’s well illustrated lecture on “Vermeer and his Contemporaries” attracted a capacity audience. We were introduced to Dutch 17^th Century Art, with its hidden,and not so hidden, meanings- some quite surprising! Although we are rightly proud of our own Dutch collection, much more can be seen at the current exhibition at The Queen’s Gallery in Edinburgh:

www.royalcollection.org.uk/exhibitions/qgphh/masters-of-the-everyday-dutch-artists-in-the-age-of-Vermeer

Visit to the Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel.

Two giant structures were our destinations in early April - the Kelpies and the
Falkirk Wheel. The skills involved are awesome and we really appreciated
them - even if we felt like pygmies in comparison to both. To top it all, we
had stunning weather and a great guide.

© Margaret Anderson

Joan Eardley.

Unfortunately, our intended lecturer had to withdraw because of illness but we were ably rescued by Dr. Joanne Meacock who took over at short notice. In a well-illustrated talk, she gave a comprehensive account of Joan Eardley’s life and work and placed her firmly in the canon of twentieth century artists. Glasgow museums have been fortunate to acquire two of Eardley’s pastels from Mrs Kathleen Buchanan.

Who were the Blockade Runners?

If you don’t know the answer to this question you should visit Riverside Museum where there is a fascinating little display on the Blockade Runners – Glasgow’s role in the American Civil War.

On 15th March a group of Friends visited Riverside to see this display and to hear a fascinating lecture from John Messner, Curator Transport and Technology, on the ships built on the Clyde to transport vital supplies needed by the Confederacy because of the naval blockade by the Union side.

We also learned about local business man, John Smith, a supporter of the Confederacy, who is thought to have been the first to fly the Confederate flag in Scotland and were able to view that very flag in the display.

As the Friends enjoyed the lecture so much we hope to invite John to speak to us again, possibly on the subject of railways.

Liz Dent.

A D Vance
Samuel Waters
© CSG CIC Glasgow Museums Collection