Special Collections and Archives
The Sidney Cooper Gallery of Art was established at 22-23 St Peters Street, Canterbury in 1868 by renowned landscape painter Thomas Sidney Cooper. Nicknamed "Cow Cooper" for his impressive paintings of cattle and sheep, Cooper established the Gallery and Art School in the city to widen access to art education.
One artist who studied at the school was Mary Tourtel who created the Rupert Bear series. The institution later changed its name to the Canterbury College of Art and School of Architecture and again in 2004, to the Sidney Cooper Gallery when it became part of Canterbury Christ Church University.
The gallery curated over 150 exhibitions during its time as part of the university, which included showcasing student work. In 2019, the university ended its lease of the gallery to focus its arts and cultural events on the North Holmes campus, in particular its new arts space, the Daphne Oram building.
The Sidney Cooper Gallery collection includes printed promotional material and documents related to the exhibitions and events hosted by the university, as well as earlier documentation about the use of the building from 1972-1975, 1980s-1990s.
The collection consists of:
- Documentation relating to the ownership and management of the Sidney Cooper Gallery 1972-1975
- Sidney Cooper Society Annual Report and Statement of Accounts.
- Material relating to the Canterbury Contemporary Art Trust.
- Sidney Cooper Centre Press Cuttings. Undated but many c. 1970s.
- Exhibition invites, posters and flyers 2004-2019.
- Sidney Cooper programmes 2007-2015.
- Sidney Cooper prizes 1995-2006.
- Visitors Books 2004-2015.
- Photographs
The collection has been catalogued by Michelle Crowther along with a team of staff, and student volunteers. Thanks go to Iva, Kate and Lily-Belle.
Collection in brief
Contents: correspondence, minutes, exhibition material
Period: 20th - 21st century
Subjects: art, ceramics
Access to the collection is during core library hours, between 9.00-5.00 Monday to Friday. Please email library.canterbury@canterbury.ac.uk with your enquiry in advance of your visit.
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