Plans to house Cecil French Bequest at Fulham Palace unveiled
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
17/06/2008
Exciting plans to house the breathtaking Cecil French Bequest at Fulham Palace on a permanent basis have been unveiled by the council.
The collection of paintings and drawings, many of which are by the world famous pre-Raphaelite artist Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones were on show at the Palace last month as part of an exhibition organised by the former mayor of the borough, Cllr Minnie Scott Russell.
The bequest was left to the council by Cecil French in 1953. It has been housed at Leighton House Museum, Kensington since 1983 but the council now plans to return one of its finest assets back to the borough.
Cllr Frances Stainton, Cabinet Member for Culture and Heritage, said: “Our intention has always been that it will then come back to Hammersmith & Fulham and be housed permanently at Fulham Palace. It is only rightful that this collection, one of the finest of its kind, resides at the Palace, arguably one of the finest buildings in the capital and truly worthy of its recent prestigious award from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). I can think of no finer home for this magnificent collection of art.”
The plans to house the collection at Fulham Palace have already received widespread support. Angel Dixon, Chairman of the H&F Historic Buildings Group said: “It is very good news that there are plans to house this collection of Pre-Raphaelite pictures and drawings in Fulham Palace permanently. The recent exhibition was the first time for a long while we had been able to see the pictures all together and they looked so good at the Palace. It is an ideal place to display the Borough's works of art.”
Sibylla Jane Flower, Chairman of the Friends of Fulham Palace and a member of the Palace’s management board was also delighted with the news. She said: “This is the best news that any art lover in the borough could hear. These are our paintings and drawings and the recent exhibition in the Palace showed the riches of the collection and how well they looked on the Palace walls.”
Among the paintings in the Cecil French Bequest are ‘Cupid delivering Psyche’, an instantly recognisable Burne-Jones painting and ‘The Garland’. Other notable paintings are ‘Mariana in the South’ by John William Waterhouse and ‘Mother and Child – Threads of Life’ by Frederick Cayley Robinson.
Fulham Palace has undergone a remarkable transformation that culminated it in winning the RICS award last month beating bids from St Pancras Station and the Royal Festival Hall. And the plan to house the art collection at the Palace permanently forms part of the council’s Heritage Lottery Fund bid to improve the Palace still further over the coming years.
As part of the initial improvement plans, Fulham Palace museum has been enhanced and linked to the Palace. An art gallery and restaurant has been created, a functions facility built and office space provided.
If the recent bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund is accepted, improvements will be made to the walled garden, vinery, stables and Gothic Lodge. The Tudor West Quadrangle will also be restored and more museum and office space will be created.
Cllr Stainton added: “The council believes strongly in the principle of community benefit and housing the bequest permanently at the Palace will enable us to create a borough of opportunity by ensuring that people, whether local or from far and wide can enjoy the collection. These really are exciting times for Fulham Palace and we look forward to hearing from the Heritage Lottery Fund in September.”
John Robb, Chairman of the Fulham Society, said: “The Palace really is an excellent place to show these paintings and drawings and there cannot be a more suitable place to house this Pre Raphaelite collection. The Palace is a magical place and a truly fitting place to see this magnificent collection.”
