Last week saw one of the most beloved paintings from the National Gallery’s London collection, The Cornfield by John Constable, go on display in Newport, Isle of Wight.
Isle of Wight film-maker Bruce Webb was commissioned by the National Gallery to capture the event and speak with those behind helping to make it happen.
If you visited last week or your child did as part of school activities, you might just spot yourself or them in the footage.
Those behind it
Bruce spoke with Gracie Divall, the Exhibitions Manager at the National Gallery (NG), as well as Dr Mary McMahon, the Bernays Cultural Fellow at the NG.
Kerry Tindall, programmes manager at Independent Arts also speaks on the film about the involvement of schools and young people.
Smout: At heart all of us have got a deep appreciation of this place we live
About the painting, Richard Smout, Isle of Wight council’s Heritage Service manager, explains,
“The painting teaches us to look at the environment we are in and we are so blessed on the Island to be in an environment where nature is so important and is such a key feature.
“It’s one of the reasons we got our UNESCO Biosphere status, simply because of that wealth around us which we can take for granted but other people will come and enjoy and I think at heart all of us have got a deep appreciation of this place we live.”
Watch the film
Take five minutes for yourself and watch the video below. Once you click play, click on the full screen icon (bottom right) to see full screen version.
The footage might just also remind you of the charm that draws people to live on the Isle of Wight
Newport was one of only five towns selected for the touring exhibition, which is part of the National Gallery’s 2023 Visits programme and the Isle of Wight High Street Heritage Action Zone team worked for months to secure a suitable display location.
Image: © Enzo Speight
