The Burton at Bideford is an art gallery and museum on Kingsley Road in Victoria Park, in

Bideford Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, South West England. It is the main town of the Torridge District, Torridge Districts of England, local government district. Toponymy In ancient records Bi ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England. It houses collections on various topics connected with Bideford’s history and cultural heritage. The art gallery displays work by local, national and international artists.

History

The Burton first opened in 1951 to a design by architect Frank Whiting when Hubert Coop RBA (1872–1953) and Alderman Thomas Burton (1875–1959), a former Mayor of Bideford and a local businessman, gifted The Burton to the town to provide "a gallery for the enjoyment, education and good of all, old and young, inhabitants and visitors, everyone and as far as one can tell, of lasting credit to the living and those to come." This was done by the two in memory of Burton's daughter Mary (1904–1949), a talented artist who died of cancer.

Collections

Since 1951 additions to the collections have included the works of such local artists as

Bertram Prance Bertram Stanley Prance (5 December 1889 – 9 August 1958) was a British artist, poster artist and illustrator who worked as a cartoonist for '' Punch'' magazine among others. Early life Prance was born in Bideford in Devon in 1889, one of five ...

(1889-1958), Judith Ackland (1898–1971) and Mary Stella Edwards (1893–1984), and the 535 piece ceramics collection put together by the artist R.J. Lloyd. Various of these were purchased with the assistance of the

Art Fund Art Fund (formerly the National Art Collections Fund) is an independent membership-based British charity, which raises funds to aid the acquisition of artworks for the nation. It gives grants and acts as a channel for many gifts and bequests, as ...

. There are also collections from the former Bideford Museum representing the history of Bideford; these permanent displays include the Bideford Witches, Sir

Richard Grenville Sir Richard Grenville ( – ), also spelt Greynvile, Greeneville, and Greenfield, was an English privateer and explorer. Grenville was lord of the manors of Stowe, Cornwall and Bideford, Devon. He subsequently participated in the plantat ...

;

Edward Capern Edward Capern (21 January 18195 June 1894), was an English poet, best known for '' The Devonshire Melodist'' and ''Wayside Warbles''. He built up a strong reputation that persisted particularly in his native Devon. Early years Capern was born a ...

the postman poet; and

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

, the first Native American to set foot in England. Artefacts include a large scale model made by Frank Whiting in 1945 of Bideford’s ancient

Long Bridge Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...

in all its stages from 1280 to 1925. The Burton also houses Coop's collection of watercolours, oil paintings and Napoleonic

ship model Ship models or model ships are scale models of ships. They can range in size from 1/6000 scale wargaming miniatures to large vessels capable of holding people. Ship modeling is a craft as old as shipbuilding itself, stretching back to ancient ...

s. The Burton at Bideford presents its own local collection as well as important national and international works which ordinarily would not be accessible to the public in the South West. In 2017 a major exhibition featured

Quentin Blake Sir Quentin Saxby Blake (born 16 December 1932) is an English cartoonist, caricaturist, illustrator and children's writer. He has illustrated over 300 books, including 18 written by Roald Dahl, which are among his most popular works. For his l ...

's original designs and illustrations for ''

The BFG ''The BFG'' (short for ''The Big Friendly Giant'') is a 1982 children's novel by British author Roald Dahl. It is an expansion of a short story from Dahl's 1975 novel '' Danny, the Champion of the World''. The book is dedicated to Dahl's oldest ...

'', while in Autumn 2018 the centre held an exhibition of the works of

Beatrix Potter Helen Beatrix Heelis (; 28 July 186622 December 1943), usually known as Beatrix Potter ( ), was an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist. She is best known for her children's books featuring animals, such as '' ...

which included original illustrations, letters, games and artifacts, etc. Also included were Eleanor Taylor's illustrations to ''The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit'' by

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...

Facilities

The Burton at Bideford was reopened in May 1994 following a major programme of refurbishment which included the building of a large extension. Today the centre has three exhibition spaces which include a permanent gallery displaying North Devon Pottery which opened in 2010, a museum, craft gallery, shop, workshop and lecture area, tourist information desk and a French-style café, The Café du Parc.The Burton at Bideford Burton Art Gallery and Museum - Devon Museums website
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burton at Bideford Bideford History museums in Devon Art museums and galleries in Devon Local museums in Devon Museums established in 1951 Buildings and structures in Bideford