1990 was the first year we co-promoted an amazing annual event called the Music Village, which brought musicians, artists and dancers from all over the world to Richmond for many years. That year the focus was on the people of Papua New Guinea, and we decided to stage it in the grounds of Orleans House (in later years we moved it to Richmond Riverside). On the day the English summer was at its absolute worst, and we had performers who were accustomed to tropical conditions, in full – and wonderfully vivid – face and body decoration, including some remarkable mudmen, all scantily clad and suffering a cold, wet June evening. It was an astonishing event despite the weather, and the highlight for me was a cricket game played by Trobriand Islanders, which mixed the ‘proper’ colonial rules with the traditional dances and chants which accompany village feasts to celebrate a successful yam harvest!
– Nigel Cutting
The gardens of Orleans House Gallery were densely overgrown in the 60s and 70s, and the house was closed as I recall, almost in ruins. The grounds were dark and gloomy, not at all the open, sunny refuge of quiet and calm they are now. It was rather a spooky place for a boy, and had the reputation of concealing all manner of googly ghosties and long- leggedy beasties and, like as not, Real Perverts. Still it was an exciting place to play, and it was only a short distance from my house. I remember I found a heavy iron shot there that must have come from the sports ground behind, but I thought it was a cannon ball and carried it proudly home. I still have it, if anyone is missing it?
It was while at Orleans House Gallery, I was introduced to printmaking with a day’s woodcut course with Sasa Marinkov. I loved it and continued playing with woodcut during the next few years when I was travelling, and then joined Oxford Printmakers when I moved there in 2002. Now I’m a Director for Double Elephant Print Workshop in Exeter, a teacher of printmaking, and artist- printmaker. It definitely began having been inspired by Sasa’s course.
– Catherine Cartwright
Sian Morgan’s connections with Orleans House Gallery run deep:
“I have been coming to the gallery for years with my parents and more recently with my own children; my sister even got married in the Octagon Room. But since joining artsrichmond, I have developed a close working relationship with the staff at the gallery. We work in partnership on lots of projects such as ARThouse, Carnival and the Literature Festival so i spend quite a lot of time here. I usually try to time my visits to coincide with lunch so that I can take advantage of the lovely café!”
I walk my dog Artemis every day and if he could talk, I am sure he would comment as follows: “I have been coming to Marble Hill Park and Orleans House Gardens since a pup of 8 weeks old. I love my walks, the p-mail scents from the bushes and benches let me know what is going on and the other dogs I meet are sociable and friendly. The “boys” in the park play football with me and throw balls and give me lots of pats. Every day is a new adventure – what a life this dog has!”
– Melissa Ashman Kulesza
The Gallery is such a lovely place to visit and to take friends, possibly after a big Sunday lunch. The walk from St Margarets is just enough to clear the head and get you in the mood for some of the splendid works on display. And put you in mind of a cup of tea and a cake in the café.
I’ve had the pleasure of speaking at the gallery twice, both times as part of the Richmond Literature Festival. Once I was plugging my book, Life’s Too Short To Drink Bad Wine, and since we had provided the audience with plenty of good wine to try, it turned into something of a party.
Another time I was with my colleague, the cartoonist Steve Bell, after we had co-operated on a book of political sketches and drawings called Live Briefs. Steve is a gigantic man, with a huge black beard and an even huger mane of black hair. He looks like a character from one of Roald Dahl’s more frightening stories. At that time, he always drew John Prescott as a little bulldog with its mouth zipped up, trotting loyally after Tony Blair, sometimes tied on a leash to the prime ministerial bus. A furious Prescott had said that if he ever met Steve he would ‘fill him in’. I said that even for an amateur boxer, filling Steve in would be quite a challenge, and Steve said that he would never offer violence to any human being. No wonder the audience loved him
Pat Astley Cooper arrived at Orleans House Gallery in December 1977, a sleepy gem in a tangled woodland garden. The gallery had been going for a few years, but pat was the first professional curator and her main job was to develop the temporary exhibition programme. When she started there was already on display ‘Hollywood on Thames’, an exhibition about the Twickenham and Teddington film studios, which was presented on a giant film roll which snaked around the gallery. It was six months before Pat saw what the gallery really looked like. pat’s first task was to make a display of the curious collection of paintings and memorabilia relating to the Victorian explorer, Sir Richard Burton (including a cast of his foot) for the new Sheen Library.
In the early years it was a very small team – Pat, Bob Sargent – the caretaker and cleaner and Bill Kinsman the technician, who was also an expert archer and a fervent animal lover. The pigeons and squirrels had a three course lunch every day in the catalpa tree. There was also John, the gardener, a ‘thresher’ poet who wrote special verses for every occasion.
Joan Heath was present at the official opening of Orleans House Gallery in 1972. She vividly remembers the marquee situated in the gallery’s front lawn.
Joan came to live in Hampton in the late 1950s. What brought her to the area? In her own words: “We live here because of the view.” It was a November day when Joan and her husband drove along the riverside in search for a new home. The view captivated them both. Joan has been living in the area for the last 54 years.
Joan is still actively involved in the cultural scene of the borough at the age of 94 and regularly comes to private views at the gallery and takes part in projects like the recent Royal Connections.
Orleans House Gallery 