300 YEARS OF SILK: A STUDY DAY AT GAINSBOROUGH’S HOUSE

Join us for ‘300 Years of Silk,’ an exclusive Silk Study Day at Gainsborough’s House, hosted by textile specialists Mary Schoeser and Kate Wigley of the School of Textiles, Coggeshall. Featuring informative lectures, handling sessions and a gallery tour of the exhibition Silk: From Spitalfields to Sudbury (17 June – 8 October 2017) with curator Louisa Brouwer, this programme will include the opportunity to study silk textiles from the 18th to 20th centuries in close detail, and will feature a Q&A discussion with the Gainsborough Silk Weaving firm. In the afternoon, privileged access to the Sudbury silk mill Vanners Silk Weavers will be available with a guided tour led by Vanners chairman David Tooth. Open to all, this Study Day offers full access to Gainsborough’s House in the historic market town of Sudbury, Suffolk, and will include tea, coffee and biscuits on arrival and a light sandwich lunch to follow. Limited spaces are available.

Tickets: £80 per person

Morning

Arrive at Gainsborough’s House from 10 am for a 10:30 start: tea, coffee and biscuits will be available upon arrival
10:30 – 11:30: Textile Historian Mary Schoeser will deliver a lecture on ‘From Spitalfields to Sudbury,’ discussing the growth of the silk industry in the East of England
11:30 – 11:45: Short comfort break
11:45 – 12:05: Textile Specialist Kate Wigley will lecture on ‘Ipswich to Sudbury,’ discussing the Sudbury silk weaving firm Gainsborough Silk
12:05 – 12:45: Q&A session with Kate Wigley and a member of the Gainsborough Silk Weaving firm, with a short silk handling session and time for discussion
12:45 – 1:30: Gallery talk with exhibition curator Louisa Brouwer in the exhibition, Silk: From Spitalfields to Sudbury
1:30 – 2:30: Light sandwich lunch served in the Hills Room with time to explore the House

Afternoon: Group splits into two

2:30 – 3:45:
Group 1 to Vanners Silk Weavers for an exclusive tour of a working silk mill with Vanners chairman David Tooth (with time to explore the Vanners Mill Shop after the tour)
Group 2 at Gainsborough’s House for handling sessions with Mary Schoeser and Kate Wigley, featuring 18th to 20th-century silk textiles
3:45 – 5:00:
Group 2 to Vanners Silk Weavers for an exclusive tour of a working silk mill with Vanners chairman David Tooth (with time to explore the Vanners Mill Shop after the tour)
Group 1 at Gainsborough’s House for handling sessions with Mary Schoeser and Kate Wigley, featuring 18th to 20th-century silk textiles
5:00: Reconvene at Gainsborough’s House for the Study Day conclusion

Please be aware that scheduling maybe subject to minor alterations

To book: Please contact Gainsborough’s House on 01787 372958 or mail@gainsborough.org