A Brief History
Bury Art Society was founded in 1949. Mr Walter Fletcher, the local M.P., accepted the position of first President. Meetings were held in a variety of venues until 1952, when, at the invitation of Mr Percy Warburton, Head of Bury School of Art, a room was acquired at the Arts & Crafts Centre, Broad Street, Bury.
Through friendship with Mr Warburton, Mr L. S. Lowry, the famous Salford Artist, became actively involved with the Society and became its second President. Many notable local artists were members, including the Swithenbank family, Mr. John Bold, Miss Elizabeth Hesp, Mr Tom Worsley, Mr Jack Lewis, Mr Tommy Valentine (Freeman of the City of London) and Mr Stanley Warburton (Chairman of the Turner Society). Some of these early members are still with us today, namely David Swithenbank, President of the Society, and Stanley Warburton, Vice- President.
The Society continued to meet at the Bury Arts & Crafts Centre until 2004 and from that time meetings have been held at Bury College, Woodbury Centre, Market Street, Bury each Monday evening during term time. Membership, currently at over 50, continues to grow, with an average of twenty plus attending the weekly meetings.
Each year a varied programme of lectures, demonstrations and practical painting and drawing sessions covering all subjects and media continues to be arranged together with outdoor painting sessions during the summer months. Painting breaks at the Bury Outdoor Pursuits Centre at Glenridding in the Lake District are offered each Spring and Autumn.
The Annual Exhibition of members’ work in the Art Gallery, together with Town Centre Outdoor Exhibitions have been a continuing source of pleasure to the artists and the public who have viewed them throughout the 50+ year history of the Art Society.
