Change in Charcoal

Valerie Irwin Archive Project

An artist's response to the demolition and construction at Cranfield's Flour Mill at the Ipswich Dock between 2004 and 2009.

This powerful piece of art amounts to 4,050 drawings and 25 sketchbooks. Many of these were quick responses, gestural, action and multi-layered as well as observational drawings.

The Valerie Irwin Archive Project charity intends to raise funds to ensure public access to the collection through the including:

  • Costs involved involved in preservation of the drawings
  • Purchase of archive suitable storage files and boxes
  • Cost of digitising particular selections and sequences of drawings which would be of particular interest to the public.

All work with cataloguing, packing, oral history compilation and organisation will be conducted by volunteers under the guidance of the Suffolk Record Office.


You are invited to a Launch of the Project at Quay Place, Key Street, Ipswich IP4 1BZ on 25th September at 6.30 to 8.30pm. If you are able to come please RSVP to info@valerieirwinarchiveproject.com 


For those of you not joining us here are a few images from the collection showing a mixture of  construction and demolition. 


For further information and to contribute to this archive visit www.valerieirwinarchiveproject.co.uk

Ipswich Art Society member Mark Beesley has won the prestigious Hugh Casson Drawing Prize at this year's Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, for his drawing 'Mock Tudor'.

The Summer Exhibition, now in its 250th year, is open to professional and amateur artists who, if successful, get to see their work hung alongside that of Royal Academicians like David Hockney, Peter Blake and Tracy Emin. This year around 20,000 works were submitted, of which less than 1000 were hung; they were selected by a jury of RA members under the overall direction of Grayson Perry. 


There are 10 prizes awarded for works in different categories; the Hugh Casson prize is for £5000. Sir Hugh Casson was an eminent architect who co-ordinated the Festival of Britain in 1951 and was also a well-known illustrator and President of the Royal Academy.


More of Mark’s work can be seen at the Open Call Exhibition at Ipswich Art Gallery, High Street until 23 September. Admission Free.