Eyeview Project Torbay Summer 2019
This was a number of exhibitions that was running in Torbay during the summer of 2019.
There were all free to attend and attracted people of all ages to visit them
https://eye-view.org.uk/extraordinary-events-listings
I managed to go to Oldway Mansion where there was a marquee set up in the grounds and you could join in with the sewing that was taking place. There they were sewing a 3D model of the Mansion house and of other notable buildings in the area.
There were plenty of materials and sewing machines there if you wanted to become part of the project . Electric and hand machines were plentiful an there were quite a few ladies there sewing as everyone would be given a specific task to sew. It was a bit on the draughty side being in a marquee and not quite like being inside Oldway itself
Oldway Mansion was the home of the Singer Sewing Machine Family and built like a mini Versailles. Unfortunately the house isf alling into much disrepair with leaking roof and broken windows although there is now a Friends of Oldway Mansion who are applying for grants to bring it back into its former glory which would be fantastic. I haven't been inside for a long time now ,its is such a shame as the ballroom and the entrance hall stairway were very beautiful and it is heart-breaking to see the building in this state. The exhibition was held on the lawns outside the side of the building, this is the are where people would get their photographs taken after getting married in the Register Office
A marquee was set up on the lawn and there were plenty of sewing machines and materials there to be used anyone was welcome to join in and help, beginner or more advanced. The idea was to produce a 3D piece of work and they were basing it on buildings around bay. I have included images of Oldway as I think they made a very good effort here and also one of a sewing machine as there used to be a good exhibit in the building with sewing machines .The Singer Family name is synonymous with the Sewing Machines. It ran for several days and as the weather wasn't particularly good the deck chairs probably didn't get used very much
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Singer
An interesting read I didn't know he had 4 wives and 18 children !
Paignton Picture House
Another of the exhibitions that I visited was at the Old Cinema in Paignton, The Paignton Picture House which has been closed to the public for many years . I used to go and see films there, but had been closed for so long I thought I would take a look at what they are trying to do with the Restorations.
There was a short film where they where telling you about how early audiences would have had an orchestra or similar to play the music that went with the films showing . I can remember going to the cinema and a man playing an organ would emerge from the depths beneath the screen.
I do hope that the cinema in time will reopen as it is the Oldest Cinema in the country. I don't know how well they did with people taking a look, but maybe more people than were there when I visited. Its been closed since 1999 which is close to 20 years now and hope that progress will be made in the next couple of years
The Torbay Picture House is a currently disused cinema in Paignton, England, situated on Torbay Road. It was opened on 16 March 1914, and is believed to be the oldest surviving purpose-built cinema in Europe. In its early days it featured a 21-piece orchestra, with each member paid a guinea to perform.
Opened: 16 March 1914
Closed: 26 September 1999
The outside of the old Cimena and the very beautiful doors which are hidden because of the repair work outside
The inside of the cinema needs a lot of work. You weren't allowed to go upstairs to the balcony, I'm not sure if it was because it was safe and likely to fall or maybe because there was stuff lying around on the floor. The walls still need to be plastered in places on the lower floor and entry to the building wa through one of the side exits as the maindoor is still unavailble to use due to scaffolding in front of it.
It looks like some of the original or early lighting on the side wall is still in place. The cinema is really not that large and when you consider in early days there would have been an orchestra sat in front of the screen, It would have been a tight fit.
This little piece of video gives you an idea of howt he orcherstra would have sat infron of the screen and played along as the story unfolded
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The 4 pictures above are from Paignton Picture Houses own web site , 3 showing areas you could not visit
http://paigntonpicturehouse.org/
Sometimes these exhibitions are not so much what they are showing you but more about the venue as above . Its been many years since the public could go an take a look inside and I went for that reason than for the actual film and music that they were showing .
The day I went to this exhibition there were only a couple of other people there . I don't know whether parents went with the kids, they might have enjoyed seeing prehistoric animals . I think however the show was more for adults and older teens
I have put the information from this exhibit below, as I think it is easier to read what the producers had in mind than for me to explain it badly .
The next Exhibition I visited was at Brixham at All Saints Church. This was based on prehistoric animals and was done in the form of a video that was projected through a cone
June 7th to June 16th
https://eye-view.org.uk/extraordinary-events-listings/the-cave-hunters-and-the-truth-machine
https://eye-view.org.uk/extraordinary-events-listings
The Cave Hunters and the Truth Machine | Sean Harris
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Fri, Jun 7, 2019 12:00 PM Sun, Jun 16, 2019 8:00 PM All Saints Church (map)Google Calendar ICS
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An immersive animation-based installation charting our journey from mythological to scientific universes and back again. Exploring the ways in which we've attempted to come to terms with vast natural forces, focusing on a ghostly subterranean megafauna and the 'Cave Hunters' who pursued these big beasts between dark worlds.
This church hidden behind the harbour should be well known around the world, because the Rev. Henry Francis Lyte was the vicar here for 23 years joining in on the 23rd July 1826 .
The claim to fame for this, is that he wrote the Hymn
Abide with Me which is a much loved hymn and sung on many occasions
Abide With Me - The Brixham Hymn - True Love and Unity 248 remember Absent Brethren.
The Reverend Henry Francis Lyte is considered to be Brixham’s most celebrated resident, well known throughout the world as the author of the hymn “Abide with Me” and a legendary figure, even in the town to this day.
The Rev. Lyte was descended from an old Somerset family, and born in the village of Ednam, near Kelso, in Scotland, on the 1st June 1793. He was the second son of Captain Thomas Lyte of the Royal Marines and his wife Anna Maria (nee Oliver). He had two brothers, Thomas and George.
His last parish was Brixham, on the south coast of England and mentioned in the “Doomsday Book”, where he was minister for twenty three years. He was instituted the first vicar of All Saints Church on 13th July, 1826 by the Bishop of Exeter. He was greatly loved by his parishioners, mostly fishermen and their families. He took a great interest in their welfare and they looked forward to his many visits to their boats when they returned to harbour. He wrote a book of hymns and prayers for the sailors' use at sea, as well as the sea shanties that sailors love.
He was keen on the musical side of church worship and produced a metrical version of psalms and many hymns for church use including the well-known "Praise my soul the King of Heaven," "God of Mercy God of Grace," "Sweet is the solemn voice that calls The Christian to the House of Prayer," "Pleasant are thy courts above" and many others. His parochial duties, his increasing literary writings and tutorial labours were a heavy burden. His health deteriorated and at the age of forty six he became extremely ill and had a period of intense suffering. He was warned again by his doctor that he must rest.
History taken from The Devon Freemasons FB site
This was different type of exhibition in that it was held within the a church and made the acoustics interesting for the sound used for the video.
I think the way the video was transmitted was unusual with it coming down a cone shaped funnel towards you but with animals still running across the bottom of the cone. and changing to other animals as the video went on.
There were only a couple of other people there when I visited and I don't know if it pulled in many people over the time that it ran, but I enjoyed the experience and it gives you an idea of how video can be presented in a different form.
Mrs Anne Lyte was a great support to her husband, managing the household with great economy, helping in the parish with many local projects, visiting the sick and helping the poor. Her careful management of their finances enabled her husband to go abroad to avoid the cold, damp, English winters. He spent long absences abroad every winter for health reasons, which were a great trial for his family. During his last serious illness he wrote the manuscript of his last hymn, "Abide With Me."
Before going abroad he left a copy of the words and the music, which he composed for the hymn, with his daughter, but took the manuscript away with him for more revision. He sent the finished manuscript to his wife, from Avignon. He knew that it was very unlikely that he would ever return home. On reaching Nice he became very ill and died there on the twentieth of November 1847, in the Hotel de Angleterre. It was fitting, that as he was dying, he was attended by another clergyman, the Reverend Manning, Archdeacon of Chichester, who happened to be staying in the same hotel. He was buried in the English Cemetery of the Holy Trinity Church, in Nice, on 22nd November. A white cross, standing on a flat slab, marks his grave and the memorial reads:-
Here rests the mortal remains of the
Revd. Henry Francis Lyte, MA
for 23 years Minister of Lower Brixham
in the County of Devon.
Born on the 1st June, 1793,
died on the 20th November, 1847.
"God forbid that I should glory save
in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." Gal. 6-14.
Author of "Abide with Me, fast falls the eventide."
It was at the vicarage at Berry Head House (now the Berry head Hotel) that Rev. Lyte wrote “Abide with me”. This Hymn became widely known after the 1927 Wembley F.A. Cup Final. King George V was present that year and it was known to be a favourite of his, so it was included in the programme of community singing before the match started. King George V took off his hat and joined in the singing. Thus began a tradition which continues to this day.
This year the FA Cup Final will be played on the 30th May and on this occasion “Abide With Me” will be performed by a 64 strong choir comprised of one representative from each of the 64 clubs who contested this year’s third round tie. It is hoped that from his long association with Liverpool Football Club dating back to 1942, that Mr John Lynes who lives in Brixham, may be lucky in his application to be their representative on that day.
Every evening at 8 o’clock the bells of All Saints Church chime out “Abide with Me”. It is at this time that the Masonic Lodge of “True Love and Unity” No. 248, remember “Absent Brethren”. The ceremony is halted, the doors opened wide and the sound of the “Brixham Hymn” floats through the temple.
A bit of history about the Vicar of the All Saints Church Brixham where the Cave Hunters exhibition was staged. and below the info about the exhibition
The above 3 exhibition I believe were as much about the venue as the exhibition them selves. We need Oldway preserved for generations to come as with the oldest cinema in the country and the Church already had history with the association with the Rev. Lyte.
In the clefts and caves of the limestone bedrock of Torbay, Victorian gentlemen made discoveries that changed our understanding of the universe forever. By systematically unearthing rich deposits of Ice Age animal bones – thought until then to have been washed in by the waters of Noah's flood – William Pengelly and his contemporaries proved that the story of humankind (and indeed of the beasts themselves) was a good deal longer than had previously been thought.
The remains of hyaenas, elephants, lions and hippopotami told a rather different tale of rising waters; one of constant climatic and environmental flux. In the ‘Cave Hunter’s’ travails – a direct challenge to the then established truth of the Old Testament – lie the seeds of our understanding of the mechanisms of climate change; a still-unfurling story. Animal bones have always whispered truths to us.
Here, within a 're-animation machine' the beasts of our Dreamtime are revived, prowling the dark mind-spaces of Cave Hunters past and present and telling a tale of the differing ways in which we have attempted to come to terms with unfathomably vast forces of nature. We have abandoned the Ark of ancient myth – but will we need another in the not-too-distant future?
The Cavehunters and the Truth Machine will feature extraordinary material held in the internationally important collections of Torquay Museum.
I looked for information on Sean Harris but was unable to find any