Northleach Decorative & Fine Arts Society

NDFAS

A Member Society of NADFAS

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Report of the Committee to the Members for the year to 31st December 2009

The Committee is pleased to report to Members on the Society’s activities in 2009. The Committee’s purpose during the year was to provide a programme of lectures and activities in keeping with the general purposes of NADFAS and with those of the Society in particular. In doing so they seek to achieve a sociable and friendly atmosphere and with a strong emphasis on enjoyable participation.

The core activity of the Society has always been the programme of nine monthly lectures. These have covered a diverse range of subjects and the lecturers have been selected from the Directory which is available from NADFAS. The Society is required to report back to NADFAS on the quality of each of these lectures and, drawing on the many comments received from members, the Committee have had no difficulty in the year in providing favourable reports on each occasion.

The Society has maintained a busy programme of events and visits. The special interest day planned for February unfortunately had to be cancelled because of severe weather, but was eventually held in October with Dinah Reynolds conducting an illuminating day on “The Cup that Cheered”, giving participants the opportunity to learn about domestic porcelain in the eighteenth century and to bring their own examples for comment and examination.

In May a visit to Arbury Hall and Coventry Cathedral was made, giving an opportunity to compare these two very diverse parts of our heritage. The season concluded with a visit to Compton Verney where members had a rare opportunity to see an exhibition of Constable portraits in addition to a viewing of the permanent collection and with lunch in the Adam Hall as part of the day’s programme. The new season started with a memorable visit in September to Boughton House and its remarkable grounds.

In March a group of about thirty members toured Andalusia for a week. There was a very busy programme of events and visits included Granada, Cordoba, Jerez and Cadiz. It was a busy and successful tour and an opportunity at close quarters to see the very considerable cultural effect on Southern Spain of the Moorish occupation.

Our Christmas event in December was held at Cirencester Agricultural College which was a new venue for the Society. After lunch there was a much appreciated and lively musical entertainment provided by a group of members of the Society.

The Society has continued to support Young Arts and to maintain its link with Northleach Church of England Primary School.

Our church recorders group continues with an active programme, which will be reported upon at the Annual General Meeting by our Group Leader, John Shapley.

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In November the Society opened its own website under the address www.northleachdfas.co.uk. It is hoped that this will be used increasingly as a means of communication with and between members and that it will be a source of useful information for members, non-members and anyone else with an interest in the Society.

The finances of the Society remain sound with a small but satisfactory surplus for the year and a reasonable reserve against future contingencies. The main purchase of equipment during the year was that of a personal computer, necessary for the purpose of digital displays, and the main item of repeat ongoing expenditure continues to be on lecturers’ fees. At the Annual General Meeting the Treasurer will report in detail on this years’ figures and on the general state of the Society’s finances.

At the time of writing this report there are two hundred and forty two members and a further fifty eight people are waiting to join us.

The Society is a member of the West Mercia Area of NADFAS and plays its part in its activities. Northleach DFAS has been represented at the National AGM and other NADFAS events.

The present Committee was elected to take over from 1st August 2009, and also at that time Daphne Abé and Cynthia Moore stood down. Since the start of the current season David Turtle and Jane Hett have been co-opted as members of the Committee. Joan Malings retired as a member of the Committee in November for personal reasons. The Committee are most grateful to all the retiring members for their outstanding individual contributions.

The Committee pay tribute to the Society’s President (Philippa Mitchell) and Vice-President (Diana Townley). Both have contributed unsparingly to the activities of the Society and have been a continuous source of wise advice and support.

The Committee also pay tribute to the many helpers who do so much for the Society in other ways. These include the great miscellany of coffee providers, register takers, sound system and projector workers and those who just come along and help when they see the opportunity. We are most grateful to all these people for their cheerful contribution.

The Committee is most grateful to the whole membership for their encouragement and support. We hope that with their help, the Society can continue to provide an enjoyable and friendly forum at which our members can pursue their interest in the decorative and fine arts.