The unique work of amateur historian Ken Cooper was unearthed at a car boot sale by artists Bristow and Lloyd. Amongst his pamphlets and homemade audio cassettes were the seminal 'Live Fast Die Young', and 'The Early Sewerage system of Haworth and its influence on the Victorian Novel'. These works shed a light on the lives of the Bronte family and Ken's very personal historial insights are now available for a new audience to enjoy. Artists Bristow and Lloyd present an alternative audio guide for Haworth, commissioned for the exhibition 'Wildness Between Lines' at Leeds College of Art. To download the MP3 guide visit http://www.bristowlloyd.info/ and to download and print the accompanying pamphlet click HERE
Artist Rebecca Chesney has been artist-in-residence at the Bronte Parsonage Museum for the past year, studying local weather patterns at Haworth and reading texts by the Brontes to see how they were influenced and inspired by the weather. A digital weather station was installed at the Museum, and working with local weather collectors and the local Primary School, Rebecca has gathered data and research in order to develop a series of new work exploring the Brontes and the weather. Her exhibition Hope's Whisper is open now at the Bronte Parsonage Museum and features a solar, wind and rain-powered sculpture in the Parsonage garden.
________________________________________________________________________________________
Regular readings take place at the museum throughout the year, with some of the UK's most prominent writers. Speakers at the museum have included Beryl Bainbridge, Andrew Motion, Sarah Waters, Margaret Drabble, Maggie O'Farrell, Barbara Taylor Bradford, Tracy Chevalier, Justine Picardie, Joanne Harris, Bonnie Greer and many, many more. To find out who is reading at the museum in the next few months, make sure you download our current arts programme brochure (top of page) or even better sign up to the mailing list to receive updates about events: contact jenna.holmes@bronte.org.uk
Bronte Festival of Women's Writing
Our third Bronte Festival of Women's Writing took place in Haworth 31 August - 2 September 2012. The weekend featured a great literary battle between Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters, novelist Sadie Jones in conversation, readings, workshops and creative activities and the full programme is available here.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Charlotte Bronte's Corset: In 2010 the museum published a new pamphlet collection of Bronte-inspired poems by Katrina Naomi, the result of her time spent at the museum as writer in residence. Charlotte Bronte's Corset can be bought from our online shop. To purchase the collection click here.
Katrina Naomi is originally from Margate and now lives in London. Her first full collection, The Girl with the Cactus Handshake, was published by Templar in 2009. She has received an Arts Council England Writer's award and a Hawthornden Fellowship, and has an MA in Creative and Life Writing from Goldsmiths. Katrina is also a lecturer in creative writing for the Open University.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
VISUAL ARTS EXHIBITIONS:
The Bronte Parsonage Museum has commissioned and participated in numerous visual arts projects:
Remnants: Su Blackwell, 21 August - 28 November 2010
An exhibition of site specific works by artist Su Blackwell. Su Blackwell creates book-cut sculptures, three dimensional paper-cut works from the pages of books, inspired by the stories inside. The exhibition featured a series of delicate installations in the historic rooms of the house, inspired by the Brontes and the museum collections. The exhibition was funded by The Radcliffe Trust and Arts Council England.
Ghosts X by Sam Taylor-Wood courtesy the artist and White Cube
Ghosts by Sam Taylor-Wood, 17 July - 2 November 2009, an exhibition of landscape photographs of the moors, inspired by Wuthering Heights. Resized for exhibition in the parsonage, the photographs were displayed in the period rooms and became almost 'windows' on to the moors, echoing the views that influenced the Brontes' works.
The Fragmented Orchestra - 12 December - 22 February 2009
The Brontė Parsonage Museum was involved in an exciting national sound project The Fragmented Orchestra, one of 24 sites taking part across the UK. Located in the Parsonage garden, a sound box relayed sounds from Haworth to a central hub in the FACT gallery in Liverpool. Visitors could interact with the sound box and become part of a vast evolving musical composition stretching across the UK. Visit the Fragmented Orchestra website for more information.
My Life Dreams: Annelies Strba - 1 August to 31 October 2008
The museum exhibited new work by Swiss artist Annelies Strba, in response to the Brontės and Wuthering Heights. The series of tiny digitally-manipulated images were displayed in and amongst the Brontės' own possessions. Also in 2008, Fay Godwin's series of photographs, Elmet, from her collaboration with Ted Hughes, were loaned to the museum by the British Library.
Cornelia Parker's Brontėan Abstracts: September - December 2006
Brontean Abstract 2006 (Anne's Hair) SEM image, courtesy of the artist and Frith St Gallery, London
Brontean Abstract 2006 (pin hole in Charlotte Bronte's pincushion) courtesy of the artist and Frith St Gallery, London
In 2006 the museum exhibited new work by major British artist Cornelia Parker. Brontean Abstracts was the result of time spent by the artist researching in the museum collections. Cornelia Parker was interested in exploring the underside of the Brontes' monumentality and this remarkable body of new work offers new perspectives on the myths and stereotypes that have been built around the Brontes and challenge our preconceptions about them. The Brontes' items were examined in new ways, to explore marks left unconsciously - the pin pricks in Charlotte's pin cushion, ink blots on blotting paper and the scribblings out on manuscripts - as well microscopic views of Charlotte's quill pen and analysis conducted on samples of their hair. The series of works were exhibited in the period rooms of the museum between 16 September - 31 December 2006.
Some of our past programme brochures:
SEPTEMBER 2009 - MARCH 2010 - Download Here
APRIL - SEPTEMBER 2009 - Download Here
OCTOBER 2008 - MARCH 2009 - Download Here
Contemporary Arts 
web.jpg "Image")