Dr Sykes' Garden - Ashurst, Formby

The first two images below have both been taken in the same place, roughly from the same position .... the first shows Dr Sykes' and his family in 1936 when the space was the back garden at Ashurst on Duke Street, Formby.  The second shot (78 years later) shows the same space as it now is at the back of the public library on Duke Street, Formby. (Note the same coping stones on top of the wall)

The last shot shows one of the surviving pear trees from Dr Sykes orchard.

Dr Sykes' purchased the land opposite his house (Ashurst) on Duke Street in the late 1930's when it was being used as a farm.  The plan was to develop the area into a new housing estate.  After the successful purchase of the land, he gifted it to the local council with the sole instruction that it should never be built upon.  It is still a public park to this day.

                                           Dr Sykes' and family - 1936

                                          Back of Formby Public Library - 2014

                                                     Dr Sykes' Pear Tree - 2014

Supervisory Meeting - 07/05/2014 @ MMU

Present at Meeting: Simon Faulkner / David Brittain / Gavin Parry

The meeting was predominantly used to discuss practice based work currently being conducted.  This work consisted of the following:

• Hi-Res scans of portraits dealing with the 'Chronotype' (The same sitter with a 22 year gap between each portrait) The presentation of which was discussed, with the negative rebate being considered important to the viewer In terms of identifying a shift in Hardman's practice and equipment.

• A series of 'Re-photography' images of Vale Royal in response to Hardman's location based portraits of Lady Delamere originally taken in 1937.

• A series of 'Re-photography' images of Dr Sykes garden originally taken in 1936.

The importance of methodology was also discussed, in terms of ensuring the database is at the centre of all archival intervention, and clearly driving the selection process and creative output.

In response to this discussion it was suggested that Keith should:

1. To spend a limited timeframe just dealing with one specific aspect of the creative output, which was suggested to be the 'Re-photography' element of the location based portraits.
2. To begin to write a brief abstract (short paragraph) specifically about the individual creative outputs starting with the 'Re-photography' of location based portraits.
3. To consider other creative strategies, such as using the paragraphs within Hardman's written 'Lecture on Portraiture' in linking his actual portraits to his words.  Lastly to consider the use of key events in Liverpool to link to the timeframe of the portraits.