By Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, 17 October 2019, 13:59PM
A new free exhibition at the Coalbrookdale Gallery, adjacent to Enginuity near Ironbridge will showcase a mix of satirical prints and objects from the Museum’s Elton Collection dating from the mid-18th century onwards. Opening on Monday, 28 October 2019, the Changing Times: Humour and Satire exhibition can be viewed Monday to Friday, 10am - 5pm until Friday, 28 February 2020 (excluding bank holidays).
A true insight into society is often best understood through the humorous drawings and prints made at the time. A large number of satirical prints were produced from the 1850s onwards covering topics ranging from the antics of royalty to smoking habits and fashionable dress. Many of these were also devoted to industry, transport and modern inventions.
The exhibition will explore the prints and objects that made fun of new technology such as steam power and the possibilities it held. Once ‘railway mania’ had gripped the nation, music, books and games were quick to feature the new wonders of steam, as well as ridicule the popularity of cheap excursion trains and the overcrowding at train stations and seaside resorts, particularly during Bank Holidays.
Amongst the exhibits will be Victorian music sheets including The Railway Husband, which was written by Albert Smith and composed by John Parry, c.1848. “I never can exchange a word from morn till eventide, His head runs quite on Railways, and he thinks of naught beside.”
Most of the items exhibited, which include original drawings, prints, books, songs, games and ceramics, are drawn from the Elton Collection held by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, which forms the best single collection of industrial and transport images.
There will be colouring-in and dressing-up activities for children, with the opportunity for visitors to take their own satirical photograph within the exhibition.
For further information, contact the Ironbridge Tourist Information Centre on Tel: 01952 433 424 or visit www.ironbridge.org.uk. The Gorge is easily reached via the M6 and M54 motorways exiting at Telford (M54 junction 4 or 6).
