Ann Morris –
First my Cornish background. My father was born and died in the white painted granite cottage on a hill in Lugdvan that my great, great grandfather built and where my brother now lives. Although my parents work meant we were based in London, our childhood was filled with long visits ‘home’ during every school holiday. All summer we would be left with my grandmother to roam the woods, wade through the streams and walk the three miles to the beach at Long Rock.
My husband and I continued with the same pattern with our own children and bought our own cottage in Godolphin Cross 23 years ago where we now spend more than half the year.
I have always been interested in art and took art history at A level, but, rather than pursue that love, went into journalism (like my father). After training on local newspapers, I worked as a news and feature writer on the staff of the Press Association, The London Evening News and the Daily Mail. I went on to write under contract as a freelance feature writer for the Daily Telegraph, The Observer, Harpers and Queen and The Evening Standard. I have also written four books: two on adoption, one on property and most recently a novel based on the true story of my mother-in-law. Two of the books I have written were sponsored by The Daily Telegraph.
In the 90’s, while continuing to work as a freelance journalist, my husband and I took on my father’s small publishing and consultancy business dealing with the Gulf Arab World. Our work, now part time, has morphed into exhibitions about British explorers of Arabia but continues with the basic intent of developing better understanding between different cultures and peoples. Most of our exhibitions are held at the Pavilion Gallery, part of the Royal Geographical Society in London – though some go on to other destinations (notably one on women explorers – Gertrude Bell, Freya Stark, Lady Anne Blunt and others – is currently at the Foreign Office).
As we spend more and more time here at our home in Cornwall, I really appreciate the opportunity to be involved in the work of the Friends of the Penlee House Gallery and Museum. I am happy to write whatever is required or contribute in any useful way.
Stuart Carter –
I spent my formative years in West Penwith where I attended local schools before university and then a career in law eventually pulled me away – but not completely. Marrying locally and with close family still in the area the ties to this corner of the country have remained strong throughout my life.
However, I would be the first to admit that in my youth the rich artistic heritage of Newlyn and St Ives largely passed me by. It took a chance encounter followed by a spell as a porter at WH Lane (Auctioneers) that taught me to appreciate fully our community’s artistic heritage. And as a community we all share in that heritage which has Penlee House Gallery and Museum at its heart, which as a trustee, I shall work to safeguard for the present and develop for the future for the benefit of all.
Stuart Carter –
I spent my formative years in West Penwith where I attended local schools before university and then a career in law eventually pulled me away – but not completely. Marrying locally and with close family still in the area the ties to this corner of the country have remained strong throughout my life.
However, I would be the first to admit that in my youth the rich artistic heritage of Newlyn and St Ives largely passed me by. It took a chance encounter followed by a spell as a porter at WH Lane (Auctioneers) that taught me to appreciate fully our community’s artistic heritage. And as a community we all share in that heritage which has Penlee House Gallery and Museum at its heart, which as a trustee, I shall work to safeguard for the present and develop for the future for the benefit of all.
William Godwin –
For the majority of my career I worked in Local Government within Education, Adult Social Care, and Cultural and Community Services. I supported senior managers and local politicians in the delivery of services across Education, Arts, Culture, Social Care, Health and Crime. Much of my work also involved supporting partnership working and community engagement with the voluntary sector. Simultaneously I was a primary school governor over approximately 13 of these years working with three south London primary schools in challenging circumstances.
Following leaving Local Government and moving to Kent, I worked in a number of new areas including Higher Education and a council run Museums Service. In 2013 I started volunteering at my local community Gallery and Museum which ended up being taken over by the Community following the Council’s plans to close the Museum. This was a steep learning curve for everyone involved, especially for the small group of volunteers who managed and ran the Museum, but it was a successful and excellent case study of community working. As well as a volunteer guide, I was also a Trustee until moving to Cornwall in late 2020.
I have always been an avid consumer of the Arts, and since moving to Cornwall I have enjoyed the wide variety of Art and Cultural experience available in West Penwith, and now, having recently retired, have much more time to enjoy them, as well as offering my time as a volunteer.
The Friends of Penlee House is a registered charity (No: 1206841), the object of which is to support the aims and activities of Penlee House Gallery and Museum, home to the county’s best known collection of work by artists of the Newlyn School.
