Celebrating the work of John Singer Sargent in London & the Cotswold Village of Broadway

By:  Blue Badge Tour Guide - Anne Bartlett

John Singer Sargent (1856 – 1925)

I have just returned from London having seen the latest art exhibition at The Royal Academy in London entitled Sargent and the Sea. It was interesting to view American expatriate John Singer Sargent’s very early work undertaken when he was between the ages of 18 and 23.

Coming from a seafaring family, the sea was in his blood. Sargent spent much time on the coast and he sailed on steam ships crossing the ocean between America and Europe.

His experiments with painting the different moods of the sea from sheltered waters with waves glinting in the sun and gently splashing rocks, to fearsome storms and rolling seas was impressive but not totally accomplished. His painting “Atlantic Storm” painted in 1876 whilst on the stern of a ship shows huge irregular dark menacing waves with flumes of iridescent white water was cleverly executed. The threatening sky with rays of light breaking behind the clouds captures a moment very well. The zig zag luminescent wake of the ship as it’s lifted out of the trough and up over a wave into another trough is inspired and gives the viewer a sense of fear in a dangerous situation. The standpoint on the stern of a ship involves the viewer in the sea crossing; however the perspective of the ship is confusing.

Sargent’s love of painting fishing boats is evident and there are plenty of detailed sketches of sails and rigging. With his “En Route pour la peche” and “Fishing for Oysters at Cancale” he captures a moment in time. Women, wearing long skirts and aprons with shawls around their shoulders are walking and talking together as they carry their empty baskets down to the sea to collect fish. The reflections in the wet sand prepares the viewer for the hard work that the women are about to undertake in the chill of the sea breeze. A small boy in the group stops to turn up his trousers to prevent them getting wet, under the caring gaze of his mother.

I’m familiar with Sargent’s later work, his famous portrait paintings of English Aristocrats. At Blenheim Palace in the Red Drawing Room for example, there is the famous family painting of the 9th Duke of Marlborough, his wife, American born Consuelo Vanderbilt and their two sons painted in 1905 which is always mentioned by the room guides during a tour through the state rooms.

However the route from landscapes and seascapes to portraiture involved a scandal in Paris with Sargent arriving in London to escape humiliation and a wrecked career. He had persuaded society beauty Madame Gautreau, otherwise known as Madame X, to sit for him. She posed for him in a revealing black satin gown with thin jewelled shoulder straps, one of which had fallen off the shoulder. It was a very daring and suggestive stance which, when the salon opened for viewing, the visitors were shocked and consequently the reviews were very negative.

Shocked, ill and uninspired to ever paint again he was gently nursed back to health and encouraged to take up his paint brushes again by his friends, Edwin Abbey, Frank and Lily Millet, Alfred Parsons, Frederick and Alice Barnard, American actress Mary Anderson and her husband Antonio Navarro.

Summers were spent enjoying the picturesque rural charm of the attractive Cotswold village of Broadway. Frank Millet and his family rented Farnham House alongside the village green, then the following year they took Russell House and also acquired Abbots Grange a derelict monastic building which had a two storey barn in the garden which they converted to a studio. Edwin Abbey and Frank Millet painted inside, Henry James and Edmund Gosse wrote in the rooms upstairs and  John Sargent and Alfred Parsons painted en plein air just outside. They were all able to talk to one another as they worked.

They were a fun loving, laid-back Bohemian group who spent their mornings working on their projects, followed by games of tennis and afternoon tea, then music and dancing or games in the evenings. Nothing was too outrageous or shocking for them, even the local villagers dismissed their antics by saying “Them Americans is out again!”

In 1885 the idea of capturing the evening light as the sun set, together with the artificial light emanating from the Japanese lanterns that the two girls are holding, excited the friends. They encouraged Sargent to paint his picture which we now know as Carnation, Lily, Lily Rose as the sun was setting. He painted whilst the light lasted, which was for about ten minutes each evening. The painting took two years to complete, but the result is sensational.

A walk to find a grade 1 listed church, a bee shelter and some hard pears

By:  Blue Badge Tour Guide - Anne Bartlett

Most people have heard of Hartpury Agricultural College which is about 5 miles north of Gloucester and has an international reputation for its range of farming related courses. So today I’m going to recommend a circular walk from the village of Hartpury, starting at the Village Hall.

Walk along Danesford Lane, then take the path through the fields in the direction of the village church where there is an interesting collection of historic buildings to discover, and some fine views to enjoy.

The name Hartpury is probably a derivation from a Saxon name for the village sounding something like Hardipiry meaning hard pear. In the church yard there’s a collection of pear trees that grow inedible fruit but which produce a surprising amount of juice that makes the most delicious drink called Perry. I understand that there are over 100 different perry pear varieties in Gloucestershire with the most amazing names: such as Merrylegs; Mumblehead; Lumberskull; Drunkers and of course Stinking Bishop. made famous by the cheese that’s washed in perry pear juice, and so enjoyed by Wallace and Gromit

St Mary’s Church is listed as grade 1 which shows that it is of exceptional interest. It dates back to Norman times, with many alterations in the 14th century including the addition of its tower.

In the churchyard is a very special beehive. It’s not your ordinary beehive, its more like a 4 star bee hotel which, I hasten to add is completely unoccupied. It has 28 identical “rooms” and five extra in the basement and would, “when in business” have housed 33 working skeps or coiled straw hives that were used by bee keepers before wooden hives were invented.

This bee shelter as it’s called, is quite unique, was made in Gloucestershire and curiously has links with the houses of Parliament.

The shelter is a 19th century stone building which was found in a garden in Nailsworth and was restored in 1968, before arriving in the churchyard behind Hartpury church and is now under the care of their historic buildings trust.

Why has it links with The Houses of Parliament? – well the mason and quarry owner Paul Tuffley who lived at Nailsworth supplied the stone to architect Charles Barry’s senior mason who supervised all the sculpture work . So the same Cotswold stone that was used to make this bee shelter is in the interior of the new houses of parliament.

Honey seems to have been used as a currency here at Hartpury, because Gloucester Abbey, who owned the land, leased it, in return for an annual payment of 24lbs of honey. Honey in medieval times was used to sweeten food and to make the alcoholic beverage Mead.

There’s a restored chapel to see, originally built by nuns who came to England having escaped from the French Revolutionary forces that invaded Brussels in 1793. They lived at Hartpury Court for 45 years and occupied themselves with farming, building the chapel and they also ran a school for girls between the ages of 6 and 12 years old.

Before you leave here look at the roof of the 15th century tithe barn. It has a carved stone Welsh dragon at one end looking in an easterly direction towards England and a stone carved English Lion looking the other way over towards Wales.

A short walk down the road takes you to view a very attractive 18th century watermill built of soft red brick standing alongside the River Leadon.

I hope that you’ve enjoyed this interesting stop. From here you can head back to Danford Lane or head on towards Hartpury College which you will see in the distance or turn right and go south towards the River Leadon and follow it to Barbers Bridge or Rudford.

Hartpury Parish Council have produced a leaflet containing information about all the walks around their parish and there is further information on their website.

Exploring May Hill, Gloucestershire

The top knot of trees on top of May Hill

May Hill is such a distinctive landmark for miles around but the nearer you get to it the less of the outline you see. I say that, because I was showing a new radio presenter around the Cotswolds.  She had moved to the Forest of Dean six months earlier and had taken many walks over May Hill and interviewed local people there, but when we were driving around the Cotswolds I pointed out May Hill and her surprise at its distinctiveness made me realise that it is best viewed from a long way away and once seen, never forgotten. 

If you want to climb May Hill, it isn't easy to find. To get there turn right off the A40 Gloucester to Ross-on-Wye Road towards Clifford Mense passing the Glasshouse on the way. Turn left by the Yew Tree Pub and drive half way up the hill and there is a small car park on the right.

Marcle Ridge with transmitter mast
in the middle of the picture

From the car park you get glorious views across the Herefordshire countryside. You can see the Ridge Hill transmitter at Marcle Ridge straight ahead.  Then over to the left, the Welsh borders and the Black Mountains. On a clear day you can see a conical hill called The Sugar Loaf which is in the Brecon Beacons near to the town of Abergavenny. You can also see a promontory called Hay Bluff, a great wedge at the northern end of the Welsh Mountains which is close to Hay on Wye.  Way over to the right are the Malvern Hills which act as the boundary between Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

The western side of the Malvern Hills

The lower slopes of May Hill are wooded, then as you get nearer the summit there's grassland and gorse bushes. A herd of ponies graze the hill which stops the vegetation taking over. There is the distinctive clump of trees at the summit and information as to when and why the trees were planted there. The taller trees were planted in 1887 to mark the Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, the younger trees were planted in 1977 to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee.

The view from the other side of the hill is across the Severn Plain with the Cotswold escarpment in the distance. The lower reaches of the River Severn cuts through the middle of the view with the great horse shoe bend around Arlingham and it takes its very zig zag route towards the bridges which are sadly out of sight. You can probably just see the wetlands at Slimbridge.

Tour and Explore Bredon Village, Worcestershire

By:  Blue Badge Tour Guide - Anne Bartlett
When you pass the M50 motorway travelling south on the M5 towards the county of Gloucestershire, you pass Bredon Hill on the left, and then see the tall slender spire of Bredon church with the backdrop of the Cotswold escarpment behind.

St Giles Church Bredon

Alongside the church you can just make out the end wall of the medieval tithe barn and then you see the River Avon which flows alongside the village and flows under the motorway towards Tewkesbury where it joins the River Severn. It’s a very picturesque and welcoming sight.

I recommend a wander around this historic village to explore the ancient church, the medieval barn and enjoy the view across the river Avon. For anyone who has read local author, John Moore’s novels, Bredon is in fact, the fictional Brensham Village.

A Norman Porch and doorway

Bredon was well developed by the 8th century and a Saxon Monastery was built, however it was apparently sacked and destroyed by the Vikings who came up the river and raided a number of villages around Bredon Hill. The church, which one sees from the motorway, is over 800 years old having been built by the Normans in the late 12th century, there are also later additions to the church and it has a lot of interesting features, the spire was added in the 14th century.

The beautiful Old Rectory dates back to the 15th century and can be seen behind the brick wall of the graveyard alongside the church. The roof of the Rectory is interesting as there are two mounted stone figures on top, one at each end. One is said to be King Charles II and the other is said to be Oliver Cromwell, two bitter enemies, and local tradition states that if ever the two meet, it will be the end of the world.

In the grounds of Manor Farm is a 14th century medieval barn which is huge, and is in the care of the National Trust. It hit the headlines in 1980 after bales of hay caught fire and the building was almost destroyed, however it has been very well restored and for an empty building it is well worth a look. There are steps up to what is called the Reeve’s Chamber, a room which overlooks the barn where records were kept of the tithes owed by the tenant farmers of the Manor. Interestingly there is a square pit in the corner which drops down to below the ground floor level and it is thought that this is where the defaulters were lowered if they couldn’t pay their dues - Punishment was very harsh in those days. There are slits in the walls of the barn for ventilation and also spaces for birds to come and go. There’s plenty of evidence and noise that it is well used by the local pigeons.

A wander down Dock Lane takes you to the riverside. And there’s a recreation ground with seats and benches where you can enjoy the riverside setting and watch the boats chug up and down this lovely river which started near Naseby in Northamptonshire and has travelled nearly 90 miles passing Warwick Castle, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Evesham and Pershore as it passes Bredon Village on its way to the sea.



For guided group coach tours around Worcestershire and The Malverns