Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery Trust

Barn Close 125: Rescuing and Reimagining William Morris’ Bird Hangings

£3,500

To conserve and display an important set of six William Morris’ Bird hangings made for Barn Close, Carlisle’s Arts and Crafts house. The hangings form part of the contents of Barn Close which Tullie has acquired from descendants of the family who lived there. A recent Victorian Society campaign secured listed status for Barn Close and Historic England’s entry highlights its ‘important collection of furnishings and other design work’.

Barn Close was designed in 1902 by Norman Evill for Maud and Edwin Scott Nicolson and is one of a handful of Arts and Crafts houses where the original furnishings commissioned by the family survive. The Bird hangings have been in continuous domestic use for over 80 years and are in urgent need of conservation to stem further deterioration and enable them to be put on public display, for the first time. They are remarkable survivors and crucial to Tullie’s 2027 exhibition Carlisle’s Arts and Crafts House which is timed to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Barn Close.

Unfortunately, Barn Close is currently on the local council’s disposal register. However, community organisations are actively working to save the house for the public’s benefit and Tullie are supporting this effort by securing these outstanding objects and sharing them through exhibition and research. Tullie have offered a bespoke exhibition tour for members next year. Post exhibition members will be able to arrange a research appointment to view the hangings in their new open gallery- store at Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery.

Co-operative Heritage Trust

Stitching solidarity – women’s banners as protest

£2,500

The Co-operative Heritage Trust’s collection contains objects and documents that tell the story of the co-operative movement in the UK, which started in Rochdale. The Trust operates across two sites; the Rochdale Pioneers Museum and the National Co-operative Archive in central Manchester. Their project will raise awareness of their Co-operative Women’s Guild banner collection through long-term improvements to displays and the development of educational resources to engage new audiences.

There are 80 banners in their Women’s Guild collection, they date from 1883 to 2016 and are incredible examples of the crafting skill of the political groups that created them. From beautifully hand-stitched designs to banners with beauty in their imperfections and slightly misplaced lettering — they are striking examples of women’s communal and co-operative creativity.

Funding will cover new interpretation for displays, a physical gallery interactive, an educational package for visiting school groups, takeaway resources for schools and digital facsimiles that will protect the more fragile banners for the future.