September 2009
The incredible contribution and survival of London's canal network during the Second World War is the subject of “Barging to Victory”, the new exhibition which opens this month at the London Canal Museum. Seventy years after the outbreak of war, the exhibition will look at the important role played by the waterways which remained functioning despite the heavy bombing campaigns which hit the city. “It is miraculous that no bomb hit the network” says London-born historian, David Barnett. Although precautions were taken and the canal was narrowed to prevent flooding in the case of a direct hit, the waterways remained unscathed. “So much destruction happened, flying bombs fell just yards away and devastated canal-side communities in places like Bow, but the canal survived close escape after close escape” Barnett concludes. London's canals made a vital contribution to the war effort, transporting food, timber, coal and heavy building material in and out of the city when the railway was inoperative. Archive images that feature the city's women workers running the waterways in the wake of a depleted male workforce show the canal to be an institution that did its duty every day of the war. “Barging to Victory: London's Canals in World War 2” runs until April 2010.
18th August 2009
With the London Canal Museum's summer art exhibition, Take A Second Look, drawing to a close this month, there's a last chance to hear its two artists talk about their work. On the evening of August 26th Maryam Hashemi and Tim Lewis, whose canal-inspired paintings and photographs are currently on display at the museum, will discuss boating, the quiet life of canals and how London's beautiful waterways have influenced their art.
Lewis, whose stunning photographic landscapes chart his boating expeditions around the UK, explains that for him stepping aboard his historic narrowboat is simply "the fastest way of slowing down". The wintry stillness of his key image, Coldham Canal, certainly celebrates the slower pace of canal life. Though Hashemi's images are very different, merging fantastical canal mermaids with London buses, she too agrees that what she found interesting about the waterways was their offer of "escape from the madness of modern city-life". Hashemi, who recently exhibited at the Edinburgh-Iranian Festival, says that the strangeness of seeing a fisherman sitting on the towpath just feet below a busy city road inspired her to explore the contrasting realities of the city and canal.
Both artists are keen volunteers at the museum. Tim Lewis is a museum trustee and says that the London Canal Museum is almost entirely run by voluntary staff and always welcomes new helpers. To get involved please visit our website at www.canalmuseum.org.uk The exhibition, Take A Second Look, runs until August 30th.
Family days a success at the London Canal Museum. The London Canal Museum made a big splash on the Regent's Canal this week with the successful launch of its family activity days which are set to continue throughout August. Kids took to the water with a leisurely boat trip on the 'Pirate Viscount' and got creative with traditional ice-cream making and artist-led crafts. The museum intends to build on the unprecedented success of this first day and has a further four activity days planned to encourage kids to take part and embrace all things canal. Future activities will run every Tuesday until September 1st and include painting plates with a canal barge artist, treasure hunts with museum mascot Henrietta Horse and more boat trips on the 'Pirate' canal narrowboat. The history of the London Canal Museum, housed in the capital's only remaining Victorian ice warehouse, has also inspired a number of tasty ice-cream making activities that give children the chance to make the ice-cream that was all the rage in 1820s Victorian London.
Education programme gains ground The family activity days are an extension of the London Canal Museum's vibrant education programme which has been gaining steam with local school groups over the last few years. Education Officer, John Donovan, says that "the forgotten history of London's waterways really captures children's imaginations encouraging them to learn and create". The history of the canals has indeed proved a great hit with the kids and these weekly summer sessions bring to life the fascinating past of the city's canals and the King's Cross area.
Notes to Editors
The museum has completed a project to make all its content accessible to deaf and hearing- impaired visitors. Whilst the exhibitions are mainly visual, there was previously some audio content that did not have a transcript available for the hearing-impaired visitor. The fascinating archive film shown in the museum shows canals in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, and whilst some of this was made as silent film, two films have a verbal commentary. Sub- titles have now been added to this and a larger monitor has been purchased so that all visitors will be able to enjoy this material including those numerous older people whose hearing is slightly impaired, for whom any background noise such as children chattering, is a distraction. The museum's computerised "talking head", which allows visitors to ask a number of questions of Carlo Gatti, who built the building in the 1860s, has now also been equipped with sub-titles for the audio content, and the museum's website has an introduction to the museum in British Sign Langage. Other audio exhibits were already equipped with written transcripts so there is now now content that is inaccessible to hearing-impaired visitors. This development is a further boost to our claim to be one of England's most accessible museums. 9th April 2009
The museum has installed an interactive whiteboard in the museum's first floor gallery to be used by its education team. Common in schools, this high-tech teaching aid is less often found in museums. The technology allows interactive content to be displayed on what is in effect a giant touch-screen. 9th April 2009
