This painting features Betty Payne and Bill Hopper founders of the Chippenham Starlettes. The group was formed in 1953 as a dancing school for children. Within a year there were thirty members, and their first production “Dick Whittington” was seen at the Neeld Hall, Chippenham at Christmas 1954. Over the years membership grew and the …
Continue reading “Portrait of Betty Payne and Bill Hopper, 1979”
Read MoreThese plaster panels are a rare survivor of the once glamourous Art Deco Cinema that stood on the corner of Timber Street and Gladstone Road, Chippenham. Its construction began in March 1936, and 8 months later the Gaumont Cinema opened to the public on 14th November. The building’s exterior was a 1930’s take on Georgian …
Continue reading “Plaster Panel, Gaumont Cinema, 1936”
Read MoreWilliam ‘Bill’ Brooker studied at Croydon School of Art, Chelsea School of Art and Goldsmiths College of Art. Between 1949 and 1965 he taught at a number of art schools including the Bath Academy of Art in Corsham. While teaching there Brooker lived in the town, working and recruiting notable artists of the British Post …
Continue reading “Studio Interior with Nude, William Brooker, 1953”
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