FEATURING in next week’s Ilkley Art Trail are nine works from The Methodist Modern Art Collection that will be on view at Christchurch and Ben Rhydding Methodist Church.

The collection of which these paintings are a part of is a remarkable one. One of its trustees is Ilkley resident Professor Ann Sumner who will be giving an open, illustrated lecture on the collection at the church in Ben Rhydding on Thursday, October 5 at 7.30pm. Professor Sumner has been Head of Fine Art at the National Museum of Wales and Director of the Barber Institute of Fine Art in Birmingham and is currently strategic lead for the Yorkshire Year of the Textiles at Leeds University as well as Historic Collections Adviser at Harewood House. She said: “I am delighted that Ilkley is hosting some of the outstanding works from the Methodist Art Collection, paintings by major artists such as Elizabeth Frink, Ceri Richards, William Roberts and Graham Sutherland. The paintings reflect the impact the two World Wars had on the artists and this is a great opportunity to see art of this importance here in Ilkley.”

A bonus for those attending Professor Sumner’s lecture will be not only to see the five pictures from the collection that will be on view but also to see another important artwork, one of the church’s own stained glass windows. “The window designed by Harry Stammers at Ben Rhydding is of exceptionally high quality," said Professor Sumner.

“In the 1950s Stammers played a major part in reviving the tradition of the York School of Glass Painting and his work may be seen throughout Yorkshire and well beyond with perhaps his finest being the Airmens Memorial Windows in Lincoln Cathedral.”