Illumination: Judy Hurst
Sat 19 Apr 08 - Sun 20 Jul 08
Intricate illustrative works, many inspired by objects in The Bowes Museum’s collections, form the basis of the selling exhibition, Illumination: Judy Hurst , by this ... view details
General News > From Royal To Rustic - Two Centuries Of Life Through The Lens
The work of two acclaimed photographers went on show at The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle in February.
Eddie Ryle-Hodges 1939 – 2001 presents a retrospective of this London and Teesdale based photographer. Featuring landscapes, fashion plates and portraits, it captures famous faces such as fashion designer Hardy Amies and architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner.
Ryle-Hodges was introduced to photography by his grandmother, who used the art as a way of recording her family’s life. His first job following National Service saw him promoting computer systems to heavy industry and the military. But he began to put his earlier skills to the test after finding pictures commissioned from other photographers uninteresting.
In 1969 he took up full time work as a professional, having mastered the art of producing black and white prints of the highest quality. His association with heavy industry and technology flourished, with prestigious clients such as British Gas, Blue Circle and Hargreaves. Assignments for firms such as Shell took him travelling to Kenya, Jamaica and Guyana.
Ryle-Hodges’ engaging charm and sensitivity behind the lens led to him drawing the best out of his subjects. His portrait of Sir Nikolaus Pevsner appeared inside the cover of the renowned ‘Buildings of England’ series, while his architectural pictures also provided illustrations for the guides.
Son Rupert, who works in the film and television industry and who has been involved with the making of Cranford for BBC1, said: “I believe that the pictures my father took for Penguin Books’ The Buildings of England were the photographs he valued most out of all his commissions.”
Emma House, Assistant Keeper of Fine Art at The Bowes Museum, said: “It was quite an honour for his work to be included in the Pevsner guides. We are delighted that his family has agreed to loan these wonderful pictures to The Bowes Museum.”
The exhibition runs until 26 May.
Complementing the above is Elijah Yeoman 1849 – 1930, a tribute to the renowned 19th and 20th century Teesdale photographer.
Born in Yorkshire only 10 years after the invention of photography, Yeoman went on to forge his name as a portrait and landscape photographer, with branches in several market towns in the North East. His Barnard Castle studio was in a prime site; catching tourists as they arrived by rail it was ideally placed to sell images of the area. The Bowes Museum has many originals in the collection, including several of the Museum being built and one of the King, Edward VII, passing through the town following a successful shooting party in the dale.
Ms House said: “Both collections are important records which capture the essence of their subjects.”
This exhibition also began on 9 February and runs until Sunday 15 June.