## **Friends of the Victoria Art Gallery Trustees Report 2021** Most small organisations such as ours have had a difficult year in all sorts of ways. For us the loss of access to the Gallery and to events has been the most trying aspect of the pandemic from the point of view of the Friends’ activities. The chance to talk about the exhibits and to share experiences of other exhibitions we have visited in the past has been blighted even although many of us have shared what we can on Zoom. Lectures on-line are something of a salvation and we are very glad for them but they lack the atmosphere and sense of occasion generated by going out and sensing the person to person delivery in a lovely environment such as we enjoy at the Victoria Art Gallery. It has been very rewarding to hear the responses from Friends to the images that have been sent out each week during lockdown. John Ennor has been an enormous help in sorting out my computer failings and my inability to see spelling mistakes. His idea to make the pictures up into booklets has reaped ample rewards for FOVAG funds. The first book is sold out and the second, rather larger, contains the remaining images up to the reopening date for the Gallery. We know that the images have been shared with families and friends and that booklets have been sent all over the country and even abroad which can only have raised the profile of the Gallery in public awareness which is one of FOVAG’S stated aims. I am grateful to all those who bought books and sent additional donations. Thanks are also due to Jim Riseley and Katharine Wall who, within the restrictions of furlough, have provided, when allowed, the measurements and sources of the artefacts which I know have added to people’s enjoyment of the commentaries. It has been a revealing exercise in terms of people’s growing understanding of the extent and range of the collection for which these members of staff are responsible. The Gallery lectures, when these were permissible, given by Jon Benington were much enjoyed by Friends and Gallery volunteers, and have helped Gallery income. Your committee was glad to be able help with ticketing and stewarding. Because we have cared for our funds most diligently there have been ample funds to enable us to assist the Gallery with its desired purchases, including conservation work and equipment during the lock down. There have been four purchases ranging from a Georgian enamel box to contemporary prints and most have been bought outright by the Friends because of the Council freeze on the budgets. The Treasurer’s report shows a total of £30,131 in Gallery support and that expenditure is detailed in the Annual Accounts. Monies have been set aside against a possible request for support for the purchase of a significant art work and to support a possible major development of the Gallery for which feasibility studies and a business plan have already been completed by BathNES council. This scheme awaits the availability of Council capital to enable a Lottery Bid to be constructed. All in all we have come out of this disaster for the nation remarkably well and your committee, to whom I am so grateful, have worked away at lining up talks and trips out to re-establish our way of life, to explore new ways of enjoying the collections and benefitting from the wonderful exhibitions that the Gallery hosts. Anna Dougherty has produced our Newsletters for many years but in the interest of economy during the lockdown Sally Buchan-Jones has brought that work in house. We are very grateful to Anna for her help over the years. I am sad to record the death of Barbara Humble one of your Trustees. She contributed greatly to research and to cataloguing the Ellis bequest and shared her knowledge of the art and antiques trade generously. Peter Gunning has resigned as Trustee as he has moved away from Bath and you all know of his outstanding contribution over many years as Treasurer and as Chairman of FOVAG. His generosity in allowing his office to provide secretarial support was boundless. Denis Gamberoni is retiring as of this AGM and his support at events, and his watercolour walks benefited us all. He has generously offered to continue to give us the benefit of his advice on his specialist field of British watercolours. Fiona Pollard has also stepped down after 5 years of tremendous help in modernising our approach to managing events and setting up our Zoom meetings so that the Trustees could more easily continue their business during lockdown. I am sure that she has changed our way of thinking about how we do what we do. Many of us have also enjoyed, to the full, the generous hospitality with which she and her husband have indulged us. I am very grateful to Marian McNeir and Sally Buchan-Jones for taking on the joint role of Events Chair and they have stepped in straight away and managed through the postponed events and started setting up other delightful future prospects. Two new Friends are standing for election to the committee of Trustees at the AGM and you will have seen their CVs and be aware that they have much to offer. We still seek a further committee member with a particular interest in how IT can best be used to further our aims. Despite the huge pressures under which they have been working this year Stephen Bird, head of Heritage Services and Jon Benington the Gallery Manager along with the other Gallery staff have continued to support us and we look forward to ongoing stimulating discussions and implementation of new plans in the coming year. Ladies and Gentlemen your support of the Gallery is highly prized by your committee, by Heritage Services and by the Gallery staff and we look forward to working productively together for another year. Chairman FoVAG May 2021 ## **Trustees Trustees of the Charity during the year were as follows** Dr Michael Rowe Chairman Sally Jean Jones John William Ennor Treasurer Denis Charles Pasquale Gamberoni Peter Gunning Resigned September 2020 Barbara Humble Deceased December 2020 Sandra Le Marchant Marian McNeir Hugh David Mortlock Pearce Fiona Ann Pollard Pam Twohig Alan Roger Wain-Heapy Vivien Womersley ThE FRIENDSOFTHE VKTORIA ARTGAiiERY INCOMEANOEXPEiiorruRE ACCOUNTFOR THEYEAR ENDED31ST 2021 2Q2ty21 01>20 5.890tsS 11.T929S 2.￿000 5.5to.oo 1.024.46 ￿￿q￿lBJF lrna98s 8llO bswknn5 1.682.26 272AO 8.39& Provknws 1.67429 RoythesA¢*iwJ NatWe￿ B NollTh ndir 3134 857.TO 0.0 ¥¢19 8¢ 22.J8T.22 E¥Mdlthr• Evp 1,5Y. I￿￿￿￿1¥EAFm 5QO OAO 4.1x8.21 414.14 L4ulMc Exh*111￿ itynai BaryPtytr3* l(*yH&y owl0nEMM￿BoX Pats Fknnts 2Q.QQDOO 20D.00 2.7WOO eoDQO 2.8eDQO 3.000.00 30,131 3.20 3.4W 2.W $1 Ir￿e￿*￿￿ExaM1n ¥0 Y70. 1,326ts1 583. i.J89.46 1.42 33.732.9S 423.7J ia68&8T NbtDbfirk N¢)ts$ 11ry2.96 13512ll 8oDklbt 62$ ThE FfttHIDSOFTHÉvicf(¥tMART&4LiERY BALAfKE5HEEfAsA131STMAROIIQII lo2￿1 £p 201￿XI Ep SID*. Pastcatdi SIDL*-W 212.rij 872ty) 212. 8T2.111 l.OJ4. 242.LX) lÉt fy) Ev¢rds&wes 16t. 79.￿13 e3.526.18 7&811. .5N27 142.W.79 144.536.T9 f5933S95 lfjQ8229 -812.47 -11.793.I6 8&7U 40000 -79500 SLtsXplK￿F1A ,037.1 ,110. -14J02.43 t139,41e. E14&24012 Bl*ebrowhttor*ard I4￿.52 141.3fQ 11 .Tr••w Independent examinerfs report to the trustees of The Friends of the Virtorla Art Gallery I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the Friends of the Virtoria Art Gallery (the Trust) for the year ended 3151 March 2021 Responsibilities and basis of report As the charity trustees of the Trust you are restM)nsible for the preparation of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Chartties Act 20111'the ACVI. I report in respect of my examination of the Trusvs accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 14515}Ib} of the Act. Independent examlnerfs statement I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters have come to my attention in connection with the examination giving me cause to believe that in any material respect- l. accounting records were not kept in respect of the Trust as required by section 130 of the Act. or 2. the accounts do not accord wtth those records. I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connertion with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached. Signed.. Name: thEDLL4n) 6Eu[E- - J DNEs Relevant Professional Qualtfication= Addres5: Lolf IDLE 6810 OR Date J?15lzi