THE return of the Durham Miners’ Gala is celebrated in a new exhibition of paintings which opened yesterday in Bishop Auckland.
Large and colourful works depicting the joyful scenes of the 151-year-old gala, showing its social and political nature, now fill the Mining Art Gallery.
“We wanted to find items that were colourful but also reflected the spirit of the gala,” said Gillian Wales, one of the co-curators of the exhibition.
The Gemini Collection, which she has put together with Dr Bob McManners, has contributed several works, including the powerful scene by Tom McGuinness of the 1968 procession squeezing its way beneath the County Hotel balcony.
Durham Big Meeting by Tom McGuinness, painted in 1968. Picture: Gemini Collection, Mining Art Gallery
Some works have come from Redhills, the pitman’s parliament in Durham City, which is the headquarters of the Durham Miners’ Association and is currently undergoing restoration. The DMA’s loans include a huge mural by Mick Jones, son of former trade unionist leader Jack Jones, which is a vivid and evocative panorama of the gala.
Ross Forbes, of the Durham Miners' Association, and Gillian Wales and Dr Bob McManners of the Gemini Collection in front of Mick Jones' 1980 mural from the Redhills parliament
The mural graced the entrance to the pitman’s parliament and was painted in 1980, which contrasts with the earliest known painting of the gala from the 1880s, which is also in the exhibition. It was done by an unknown hand.
Racecourse at Durham by an unknown artist around 1880, the earliest known painting of the gala. Picture: Durham Miners’ Association. Photography by The House of Hues
“The gala is a celebration of County Durham’s heritage, but it’s also about keeping that alive – the miners’ banners are still processed, for example,” said gallery curator Clare Baron. “The exhibition shows how these communities were formed and shaped, and what the gala still means to us today.”
The Years of Victory by John Bird. Picture: Durham Miners’ Association. Photography by The House of Hues
An early favourite in the exhibition is a piece called The Years of Victory and was painted by John William Bird in 1947 – the year that the coal industry was taken out of private hands and nationalised. It shows a happy scene beneath Durham castle as the gala-goers begin their journey home.
“The miners saw nationalisation as their great victory because contracts were standardised, there was going to be better pay, welfare and conditions,” said Dr McManners, “but I like the painting because there are some great characters in it – there’s a boy with toothache from eating a toffee apple and the bloke who’s had too many beers.”
It sums up the euphoria and the aftermath of Durham’s big day out.
- Unity is Strength: Durham Miners’ Gala is now open at the Mining Art Gallery, Bishop Auckland and will run until the end of 2022.
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