AGM Talk: Duncan Walker - The Russell Cotes Museum

Duncan Walker, Curator of Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum gave the talk after the AGM. He entitled it “Selected Curatorial Highlights”.

He began with a picture of his official Curatorial Hat and followed up with a potted history of the remarkable couple who built the highly idiosyncratic collection of art and artefacts. Merton and Annie Russell-Cotes built a huge fortune as hotel keepers and spent it travelling the world, with many adventures (skirts catching fire when strolling on volcanos), collecting curios before finally deciding to donate their entire collection to the town of Bournemouth in 1908.

Duncan gave us an entertaining tour of some of the items, including:

• a painting with a signature forged to make it seem by Burne-Jones (Merton liked big name artists and adored a bargain)

• a painting of Jezebel that revealed a thoroughly scandalous first version when x-rayed (Jezebel unclothed - oh, my!). Apparently Merton had insisted the painter add respectable clothing before buying it.

• a painting that caught fire while the artist was painting it

• a painting that enjoyed such an exciting life that it was just barely tacked on to a backing when the Russell-Cotes acquired it

• an elaborate Tibetan teapot. (Apparently the Tibetans are very fond of yak-butter tea and will always honour visitors with a cup. Drink it all at once or they will feel it their duty to continue to top it up. Yak butter has many, many calories….)

• a series of fabulous Maori portraits

• And so on…

He ended with a plea to visit and support the Russell-Cotes Museum. Like many museums and galleries, the Russell Cotes had been hard hit by cuts in financial support by government and local authorities. The building was in a sorry state, much in need of repair but the museum offeres a dazzling array of items and regular exhibitions - and the cafe serves a fabulous cream tea.