Civic praise for Friends - the Paul Catherall exhibition

 

Civic praise for Friends
 

THE LORD MAYOR of Coventry (Councillor Birdi) was fulsome in his praise of the Friends of Coventry Cathedral for their sponsorship of the Paul Catherall exhibition when he spoke at the official opening last Friday.
     Paul Catherall attended Woodlands School and spent his formative years in Coventry before making a career with his art in London.   The modern buildings of Coventry surrounded him in his youth, and they can be seen reflected in his work today.
     The sponsorship of the Friends has brought to the people of Coventry a collection of the artist’s impressions of many well-known Coventry buildings.   I also was brought up in Coventry and the exhibition has given me a quite different perspective as I look around the city centre.
     Miniature prints of the Cathedral Ruins and of Coventry Station are available to all who visit the exhibition.
 

PHOTO CAPTION ABOVE: (left to right) Paul Catherall, The Lord Mayor and Mayoress, Chairman Martin R Williams at the Official opening. 
 

The following article appears on the BBC News online pages.   You can read the original using the link -
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckmm81jl0jzo

At-risk modernist buildings

featured in exhibition
 

 

Coventry's modernist architecture, much of which is at risk, is being
celebrated in a new exhibition.
     Paul Catherall's linocut prints showing landmarks such as the Bull Yard and railway station form part of the show at Coventry Cathedral.
Each building featured, apart from the cathedral, is set to be "redeveloped, closed, uncertain or under threat," he said.
     The city has undergone a lot of redevelopment in recent years. About 1,500 homes are set to be built as part of a £450m scheme affecting City Arcade, Market Way, Shelton Square and Hertford Street.
     Some public art, such as the listed Three Tuns mural, will be moved and new pieces created, said developers Shearer Property Regen.
“We understand the importance of preserving public art and heritage features for the enjoyment of future generations," it added.
     In November 1940, German bombers destroyed much of Coventry's city centre. It was rebuilt in what was then thought of as a bold, modern style.
Redevelopment of those buildings has meant some have been lost or left empty.
     "I'm not a slave to thinking everything had to be kept," Mr Catherall said.   "But it's definitely turned into a tribute to what could be completely lost."
     His prints showed the buildings "in their best life," he added, "to give them a bit of their original glamour".
     One print shows the city's Grade II listed sports and leisure centre building which closed four years ago and remains empty.
     "It was a real ground breaking piece of architecture, it got glowing reviews when it was built and for it to be left is just really sad," said the print maker.
     Coventry City Council said it was still working to secure an occupier for the site and was spending about £400,000 a year to maintain and secure it.
     For his prints to be shown in the cathedral was "amazing," said Mr Catherall who grew up in the city.
"I honestly did not walk around aged 13 or 14 admiring the brutalist architecture, but your surroundings seep into you," he added.
     The London-based artist has previously been commissioned by Transport for London, The Royal Shakespeare Company and Penguin Books.
     Sent From Coventry is on display at Coventry Cathedral until 7 July.                                                                                                Vanessa Pearce

 

DON'T FORGET THE

Visit to Charterhouse

 

     The Grade I listed, 14th century building has served many different purposes since it was first founded in 1381.    The site began life as a Carthusian monastery, home to a silent order of monks who lived peacefully off the land.   Through the centuries the building changed hands as a private house, with notable inhabitants including Robert Dudley, famous favourite of Queen Elizabeth I, and John Whittingham who cultivated the nursery and walled garden that produced exotic fruit for wealthy locals.
     Charterhouse has a strong connection with Coventry Cathedral.   In 1940 it was bequeathed to the City by Col. William Wiley, who was a Cathedral Churchwarden for many years and a former Mayor of Coventry.
 

 

TRAVEL by CAR: Car parking is available.   Visitors register upon arrival. 
TRAVEL by BUS: You can catch the 3 (National Express Coventry bus) towards Warwickshire Shopping Park from Cross Cheaping (Stop BS6) in Coventry city centre, arriving at Humber Avenue on London Road right by the back entrance to Charterhouse in just 7 minutes. The 3 runs every 15 minutes.

More details of Charterhouse are available online at
 www.historiccoventrytrust.org.uk/visit/charterhouse/