Out of the Archive
August 2015
In August 2015 Tate St Ives ran a series of five sessions, bringing archive items out into the gallery. The sessions called ‘Out of the Archive’ were free to visitors with admission to the gallery.
The topics covered were: Barbara Hepworth’s letters, Postwar cultures, Patrick Heron, Interwar fashions and Photos from the archive and were held in Tate St Ives’ resource room. Participants had the opportunity to hear personal stories about St Ives revealed through documents, photographs and oral histories from the St Ives Archive.
Throughout the sessions recorded oral histories were played, which offered a unique opportunity to hear first-hand the voices of those who lived and worked in the town. This offered people a wonderful emotional connection to the heritage of the town; it also brought the lesser-known stories of St Ives to the fore.
Local historians, Jeanie Sinclair and Janet Axton, ran the workshops and Jeanie commented: “The Out of the Archive project was a great opportunity to share oral histories from the St Ives Archive with gallery visitors, and listening to those voices is a fantastic accessible way for people to explore and engage with the stories of St Ives’ creative community.”
Cornwall Heritage Trust was able to fund the project with a grant of £1,000 which helped to pay for the speakers and resources required to make the sessions successful.
