National Gallery Briefing Notes

As it will no doubt surface again and again, here are a few notes on the "National Gallery". In November 2007, there was an informative question and answer session by Jim Perchard to Mike Vibert.

http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/questions/17775-30744-6112007.htm

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR EDUCATION, SPORT AND CULTURE BY SENATOR J.L. PERCHARD - ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 6th NOVEMBER 2007

Question

Would the Minister advise members -
1. Who the members of the National Gallery Steering group are?
2. Who appointed the members of the National Gallery Steering group?
3. What the terms of reference of the National Gallery Steering group are?
4. Who was responsible for drafting of the terms of reference for the National Gallery Steering group?
5. What support, if any, is being given by States departments or bodies owned or controlled by the States to the National Gallery Steering group?
6. Which, if any outside consultants are advising the National Gallery Steering group or States departments over the proposal to develop a National Gallery on the Weighbridge site, the total estimated cost of all consultancy work in this regard and the mechanism in place for their funding?
7. Will the Minister make available any minutes of the National Gallery Steering group as an appendix to the answer to this question?

The reply gave the following information, with my notes:

1. The current members of the National Gallery Steering Group are: the Chairman of the Jersey Heritage Trust Jurat John de Veulle OBE, the Deputy of Grouville, the Connétable of St Helier, the Director of the Jersey Heritage Trust Mr Jon Carter, Mrs Melissa Bonn, Mrs Susie Pinel, Mr Jonathan Voak, Mr Robert Tilling, RI, MBE, Mr Ray Banks FRSA, the Curator of Art of the Jersey Heritage Trust Ms Louise Downie and the Cultural Development Officer Mr Rod McLoughlin. The group is chaired by the Bailiff, Sir Philip Bailhache.

Who are these people?

They can be divided into the following groups:

The Jersey Heritage Trust contingent is:
John de Veulle (Chairman), Seigneur of Augrès, Retired senior partner Ernst & Young
Mr Jon Carter, Director, Jersey Heritage Trust
Ms Louise Downie, Curator of Art, Jersey Heritage Trust

The States contingent is:
Connétable of St Helier, Simon Crowcroft
Deputy of Grouville, Carolyn Labey, Assistant Minister for Education, Sport and Culture

The States Quango contingent is:
Mr Ray Banks, Chairman Jersey Public Sculpture Trust
Mr Rod McLoughlin, Cultural Development Officer, Education, Sport and Culture

The commercial contingent is:
Mrs Melissa Bonn, the Channel Island representative for Christies, the fine art auctioneers.
Mr Jonathan Voak, founder of Atelier Limited. Atelier Limited is based in London and Jersey and deals mainly in 17th - early 20th century oil paintings, watercolours, drawings and etchings and offers a museum standard conservation service. The company operates from its office in Grouville, Jersey, and uses its London base near Tower Bridge to meet clients.
Mr Robert Tilling, local artist and jazz and blues player. Working primarily in watercolour, acrylic, gouache and charcoal, the majority of his work is based on local landscape and seascape. He is presently the Chairman of the Management Committee at the Jersey Arts Centre.

and finally, the "ordinary member of the general public" presence is represented by:

Mrs Susie Pinel, wife of Honorary ADC, Lieutenant Colonel John Pinel (Honorary ADC to the Lieutenant-Governor

2. The members of the Steering Group were invited to join by the Jersey Heritage Trust.
3. The Steering Group was established, following a meeting of the Jersey Heritage Trust in December 1999, "to produce a detailed feasibility study, project definition statement and outline architect's brief, identifying among other things a site and sources of funding".

In February 2008, it made its first and so far only public report. The report says the Weighbridge gallery could be funded by £10m from developer contributions from the Waterfront, and a £15m endowment from wealthy Islanders to cover running costs. They say the gallery should be run by Jersey Heritage, based across the Weighbridge square at the Jersey Museum. A pity they can't do the same for Island Youth facilities, or the Millennium Park!

http://www.thisisjersey.com/2008/02/23/a-national-gallery-at-no-cost-to-taxpayers/

4. The terms of reference above were drafted by the Jersey Heritage Trust which, as I have indicated, established the group. They follow a recommendation in the culture report of 2000 commissioned by the then Finance and Economics Committee.

5. Administrative support is provided within the Bailiff's Chambers. The Cultural Development Officer of the Education, Sport and Culture Department was invited on to the group this year to assist in the development of a strategy document for the group, as I recognise that if the matter were to be advanced it would be for me, as Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, to bring forward any such proposals. This work, which is currently in progress, includes obtaining the views of the Economic Development Department, the Economics Unit.

I've not as yet found anything relating to Philip Ozouf on this matter. He is keeping a low profile here.

6. Hopkins Architects are advising the National Gallery Steering Group on design matters. They are producing the following: a feasibility study report, an initial specification for the building, a three dimensional model, and perspective drawings to illustrate the urban design and architectural concept. This is under a fixed £30,000 contract with the Planning and Environment Department which is being funded though percentage for art contributions. The Economic Development Department has commissioned a report from Locum Consulting which is involved in a number of other projects related to the visitor economy. The question of the desirability of a gallery in this context featured in the Locum Destination Audit published in November 2006. The cost of the Locum report on the National Gallery is £7,500 which is being shared between the Economic Development Department and the Waterfront Enterprise Board.

7. As I have previously indicated, I intend to make public the strategy document when it is complete. I am advised that the Minister for Economic Development will also publish, with an accompanying note, the Locum Consulting report. The minutes of the National Gallery Steering Group, which date back more than seven years, are confidential to the group and it would be a matter of approaching the Chairman to seek the views of the group about releasing them

Don't expect any minutes then - this is Mike Vibert, the Senator who sat on the Kathi Bull report until it was released to the press. But in case you missed the consultation document , it was mentioned in Hansard back in 11 March 2008

http://www.statesassembly.gov.je/documents/hansard/12991-21658.htm#_Toc193699279

Deputy G.C.L. Baudains of St. Clement of the Minister for Education Sport and Culture regarding the consultation on the possibility of Jersey having a 'National Gallery': Would the Minister advise whether the consultation on the possibility of Jersey having a National Gallery is being co-ordinated by the Steering Group and not the Education, Sport and Culture Department? And if so, why?

Senator M.E. Vibert (The Minister for Education Sport and Culture): A report has been submitted to me on the creation of a National Gallery for Jersey by a Steering Group established by the Jersey Heritage Trust and it is this report that is currently out for consultation. I have made it clear and the Steering Group acknowledges this in its own report that it is most important, that it is an opportunity for the public to respond to the contents of the report. I as Minister have therefore undertaken this consultation exercise. The report and the supporting document are published on the States website and hard copies available in the normal way from the Public Library, the States Bookshop and from the contact centre at Cyril Le Marquand House. Respondents are invited to make known their views to one of the Assistant Directors of Education Sport and Culture at my department. The consultation is therefore being conducted by my E.S.C. (Education Sport and Culture) Department on my behalf.

The consultation closed in April 2008. The only notification I was able to find in the JEP was a mention that it would be coming in February 2008, in an article by Ben Quérée. Hardly headline grabbing stuff! I suspect it was tucked away in the fine print of the Jersey Gazette.

If you want to look at the consultation documents, they are here:

http://www.gov.je/ESC/Reports/NationalGallery+Consultation+Documents.htm


Here are a few choice snippets from the Final Consultation Report, which sets out why we can call it "National" (a paragraph which is a good candidate for Private Eye's Pseud's Corner), and what it will cost - apart from Staff costs which are mentioned only briefly.

In this connection it is worth observing that the Isle of Man quite unselfconsciously and entirely without hubris refers to 'Manx National Heritage', 'Manx National Week' and the "Manx National Youth Band" to give but a few examples. It vigorously dismisses any suggestion that its 'national day' lacks legitimacy. Neither is this purely a matter of semantics; it has been remarked upon that this sense of cultural confidence unites the community and readily communicates itself to visitors.

The admissions income is derived from the model of Mont Orgueil Castle, a site administered by JHT on the basis of a £9 admission ticket and 65,000 visitors annually, with the resulting figure of £585,000 adjusted to take account of the number of free admissions whether school children, senior citizens or others entitled to free entry.

With regard to the cost of the temporary exhibition programme, the Locum report suggests that it would be desirable to invest more than the £250,000 allowed in the JHT forecast, given that the attraction of visitors (and particularly return visitors) is closely related to investment in an appealing programme of temporary exhibitions. Locum advocates an annual budget of £500,000 for this purpose.


The steering group has been concerned to ensure that appropriate allowance is made for the ongoing maintenance of the building. The annualised figure of £85,000 included above is derived from Building Cost Information

An endowment sufficient to yield the £500,000 required to operate the gallery and to make provision to retain its real terms value is likely to require around £15m in capital according to the figure provided by Locum [Locum p.6]. It is accepted that there would have to be detailed discussions about the amount required for the endowment, balancing the capital sum required with the investment policy as it relates to risk. The principle is accepted that this sum will be raised by fund-raising.

There are many variables to consider when projecting staff costs.

The key variable factors are set out below: Opening times 7 days per week 360 days per year 10a.m.-5.00 p.m. (Summer) and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. (Winter) This factor strongly Impacts on requirement for visitor service assistants, stewards and site gardiens.


Programme activity: Three major Gallery exhibitions per annum will need at minimum (in addition to administration and management time, curatorial, marketing, finance, conservation, etc provided centrally through JHT organisaton): a technician working (exhibition build), loans registrar (exhibition administration), assistant curator (writing associated interpretative material for each exhibition and providing educational programmes), design post (production of general information, educational and marketing materials)


Security: The number of stewards is a function of the chosen exhibition type, conditions of loan and design layout. It is assumed there will be an average of two on duty at all times. Stewards will also be trained to provide additional visitor information.

"A great deal of my work is based on the landscape and still life which is composed by a process of imaginative reconstruction in which both observation and memory play important parts" wrote Robert Tilling. There is a lot of imaginative and creative reconstruction in the proposals for the "National" Art Gallery.